Swede Robin Soderling avoided a first-round exit for the fourth time at The Championships. The 13th seed, coached by Magnus Norman, hit 31 aces, 59 winners and committed just 10 unforced errors in a 6-7(4), 7-5, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Gilles Muller of Luxembourg. It was his first match since finishing runner-up at Roland Garros to Roger Federer earlier this month.

“It's always tough,” said Soderling. “This was my first match since Paris and my first match on grass, which is very different from the clay, so it was a little bit tough in the beginning. But after a while, I think I managed to play better and better.”

Soderling's best performances on grass courts came at Nottingham in 2004 and 2006, when he reached the semi-finals. Soderling will next meet Spaniard Marcel Granollers, who overcame Andreas Beck of Germany 6-2, 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-2.

Eleventh-seeded Croat Marin Cilic and American Sam Querrey will face off after both players advanced with identical 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 wins against respective first-round opponents Spaniard Alberto Martin and Thai lucky loser Danai Udomchoke. The 20-year-old Cilic reached the fourth round last year at Wimbledon (l. to Clement), while Querrey had lost in the first round in his previous two event appearances.

Feliciano Lopez, the No. 21 seed from Spain, who reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 2005 and 2008 with his classical serve-volley game, fell at the first hurdle Monday to Slovakian lucky loser Karol Beck in a 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4, 10-8 marathon win over three hours and 45 minutes. Beck, appearing at The Championships for the first time since 2005, goes on to meet Nicolas Almagro of Spain – a 8-6 fifth-set winner over Argentine Juan Monaco.

Croatian Ivo Karlovic, the 22nd seed, broke a string of four straight first-round exits at The All England Club as he fired 32 aces en route to a 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 win over Slovakian Lukas Lacko. The 6'10" Croatian won grass-court titles the past two years at Nottingham, but had failed to carry his form over to Wimbledon. Karlovic's winless streak at the grass-court major had begun in 2004, when he lost to Roger Federer in the fourth round.

German 27th seed Philipp Kohlschreiber fought back from a 0-5 deficit in the first set against Florent Serra of France to record his first win since 2006 at the All England Club 7-6(3), 6-1, 6-4. Kohlschreiber reached the Halle semi-finals two weeks ago, losing to eventual champion and compatriot Tommy Haas. He will next face Czech Ivo Minar, a 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 victor over Maximo Gonzalez of Argentina.

American No. 28 seed Mardy Fish also won his first Wimbledon match in three years, when his Argentine opponent Sergio Roitman retired with a shoulder injury in the third set. “It's nice to win a match here,” said Fish, who was leading 6-3, 6-2, 4-1. “I've had some tough draws the past couple years, right on the cusp of being seeded and then having to play [Richard] Gasquet and [Rafael] Nadal, and I played [Andy] Murray pretty well in Queen's, so it was good.”

Fish will next take on experienced grass-court player Janko Tipsarevic, who has reached the Wimbledon fourth round in 2007 and 2008. Tipsarevic defeated Jan Hernych of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-4, 7-6(4).