A little cloudy, sometimes swirly and with intermittent periods of sunshine.

You might have been talking about the weather conditions at Wimbledon’s No.3 Court or you might have been referencing Nick Kyrgios’ tennis.

But the weather held, and so too did Kyrgios as he battled past British wild card Paul Jubb in the first round on Tuesday. 

The Australian required three hours and five minutes to claim a 3-6, 6-1, 7-5, 6-7(3), 7-5 victory over the world No.219 Jubb, who was chasing his first win at a Grand Slam. 

For periods that seemed possible against the unpredictable Kyrgios, who combined his usual big serving with the odd under-arm delivery and efficient groundstrokes with some unreliable tweeners.

Jubb, by contrast, was a steady presence, displaying both feathery touch and a remarkable measure of composure. Both were a factor as the 22-year-old Briton gained the early edge, capitalising on a flurry of Kyrgios errors to claim the first break of serve in the eighth game of the first set.

Hitting a ball that landed outside the court, and possibly the Grounds, eased none of Kyrgios’ frustration. Minutes later, Jubb calmly served out the opener in 23 minutes.

Kyrgios, though, had won all four of his previous matches against wild cards at Grand Slam tournaments, and a dip from Jubb in the fourth game of the second set provided an opening. He secured a break of serve on his first break point opportunity and soon gained a 5-1 advantage. Surviving a break point on his own serve, Kyrgios consolidated to level.

While a tense Kyrgios might have seemed distracted as he repeatedly engaged with umpire Marija Cicak, members of the crowd and most of all himself, he was in fact now producing good tennis. 

Even as games remained on serve until the 11th game of the third set, he was clearly dictating proceedings. Kyrgios seized the break and helped by some booming aces, he closed out the set in 40 minutes.

Still, the York-born Jubb was holding his own against the 2014 Wimbledon quarter-finalist. As he served first in the fourth set, an appreciative crowd was roaring their support for the 22-year-old. The suspense-filled stanza concluded with a tie-break, which Jubb dominated against an error-prone Kyrgios.

And Jubb kept coming, even after dropping serve again to provide Kyrgios with a 4-2 lead in the decider. Three games on, he fought back to level and with another break point opportunity in the 11th game, he further undermined Kyrgios’s momentum.

But it proved a last push for Jubb, who surrendered his final break in the 12th game, the match determined by a forehand error – one of 35 Jubb amassed against his 36 winners.

“It was incredibly tough. Obviously, you know he’s a local wild card and he had nothing to lose,” said a relieved Kyrgios in his on-court interview.

“He just enjoyed the moment and played some exceptional tennis at times. He’s going to be a good player, that’s for sure. I’m just happy to get through.”

Kyrgios will acknowledge there’s work to be done ahead of the second round, when he faces either No.26 seed Filip Krajinovic or the unseeded Jiri Lehecka, with his 55 unforced errors clearly damaging.

But he’ll also take confidence from his biggest weapon, with his first round progression helped by 30 aces compared to 11 double faults. Kyrgios saved 11 of the 13 break point opportunities that Judd accumulated, converting five of his own.

The biggest boost for the unseeded Kyrgios, who currently sits at world No.40, undoubtedly comes from returning to contest another match at his favourite tournament.

“It’s a lot of fun obviously,” said the 27-year-old Kyrgios of his eighth appearance at The Championships. “It’s always something special to be out here.”

Always potentially stormy too. The weather forecast for Kyrgios’ second round on Thursday is so far unknown – but just as Kyrgios’ opponents have learned at Wimbledon, it’s best to prepare for anything.

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