Tsonga ends Hewitt hopes

Lleyton Hewitt was unable to roll back the years as he was beaten in straight sets by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round at Wimbledon.

Hewitt, the 2002 winner, has struggled increasingly with injuries over the past few years but returned to the circuit at the French Open after more than three months off and newly positive following a radical toe operation.

However, the Australian, now ranked 202nd in the world and the recipient of a wild card here, is short of matches having not won since a third-round victory over rising star Milos Raonic at the Australian Open in January.

Tsonga, who beat Roger Federer to reach the semi-finals here last year, was a hugely tough first-round opponent for Hewitt and in the end the 31-year-old was overpowered, losing 6-3 6-4 6-4.

Hewitt had his chances, particularly in the second set, when he brought up three break points in the sixth game only for Tsonga to send down three massive serves.

A poor game from Hewitt at 4-4 then gave Tsonga the crucial advantage, although the Frenchman still needed to recover from 0-40 in the next game to take the set.

The decider was more straightforward, with Tsonga, a potential quarter-final opponent for Rafael Nadal, breaking serve for the only time in the seventh game and then clinching victory when Hewitt netted a backhand.