Krajicek Dodges Rain and Embarrassment

WIMBLEDON, England — Rain pelted the already soggy grounds of the All England Club throughout Monday’s opening day at Wimbledon, moving in and out at a whim that defied even the club officials here. About the only scheduled event that was not interrupted or ruined was the day’s only noncompetitive one--the effusive ceremony that heralded the opening of the new Court 1.

The presence of members of the royal family, standing hatless and exposed to the elements at the festivities, might have accounted for the weather’s discretion.

Otherwise, the rain was indiscriminate. Wimbledon officials had predicted that half of Monday’s program would be postponed. That was optimistic. By 8 p.m., and after four long delays, the day’s second matches were still being played on most courts. Play was suspended for the day about an hour later.

Less rain is expected today, but weather forecasters are warning that this fortnight could be the wettest at Wimbledon in at least six years.

Fans had the worst of it Monday. Long lines of ticket-holders were moving at an agonizingly slow pace because of stepped-up security at the gates. Thorough bag searches were prompted by the Irish Republican Army bomb threat that had caused the Grand National horse race to be postponed for a week in April.

Once through the security gauntlet, spectators found themselves squeezed into less space than in the past. The new Court 1 and its huge attachments obliterated a hilly picnic area and made even simple strolling an exercise in getting to know your neighbor.

Once they made their way through the grounds and into their seats, spectators saw little tennis. Defending men’s champion Richard Krajicek of the Netherlands overcame prematch jitters and defeated Marcello Craca of Germany, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2, 6-4. English hope Tim Henman won the first match on Court 1. Henman, seeded No. 14, defeated Daniel Nestor of Canada, 7-6 (13-11), 6-1, 6-4. Second-seeded Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia made quick work of Dinu Pescariu of Romania, 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.

Iva Majoli of Croatia, the French Open champion, also had to deal with nerves and won her first match at Wimbledon. Majoli, seeded fourth, defeated Mariana Diaz Oliva of Argentina, 2-6, 6-0, 6-3. Lindsay Davenport of Newport Beach, seeded No. 5, defeated Tami Whitlinger-Jones of Henderson, Nevada, 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.

Little went according to script Monday. The title-holder’s traditional triumphant return to Centre Court was preempted by the Court 1 ceremony and its parade of past champions. Krajicek said he didn’t notice, so focused was he in safely navigating his opening-round match.

“I feel relieved,” he said. “It was still fun to go out there, but you don’t want to lose. Normally, you don’t want to lose, but this time you want to lose less than [at] other times. So I felt pretty pressured.”

Majoli got over a debilitating mental hurdle with her victory. She was the surprise winner at Roland Garros two weeks ago, calling it her life’s dream. Before this grass-court tournament Majoli amended that and called winning a match at Wimbledon her dream.

“I was so excited for this match,” she said. “Just to win it, it’s like a dream come true. Finally, at Wimbledon . . . first round . . . you know. I have to say that when I won this match today I was almost as happy as when I won the French Open. It was a relief.”

Officials here wish they were in position to feel relief. They will spend the night remapping the schedule to accommodate the mass of unplayed matches. Fans will spend the night sleeping in tents--if they are lucky--outside the gates, lining up for tickets.

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Wimbledon Featured Matches

CENTRE COURT

* Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (8), Spain, vs. Clare Wood, Britain

* Mark Philippoussis (7), Australia, vs. Greg Rusedski, Britain, completion of susp. match

* Chanda Rubin, Lafayette, La., vs. Anna Kournikova, Russia

* Todd Woodbridge, Australia, vs. Michael Chang (5), Henderson, Nev.

COURT 1

* Martina Hingis (1), Switzerland, vs. Anne Kremer, Luxembourg

* Michael Stich, Germany, vs. Jim Courier, Miami, completion of suspended match

* Pete Sampras (1), Tampa, Fla., vs. Mikael Tillstrom, Sweden