Wimbledon 2026: Julian Cash & Lloyd Glasspool begin title defence with dominant win
• 2 minute read
Defending Wimbledon men's doubles champions Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool began their title defence in impressive fashion, cruising into the second round with a straight-sets victory at SW19.
Cash and Glasspool needed just 51 minutes to dispatch Mariano Navone and Adolfo Daniel Vallejo 6-3, 6-0 and secure their place the next round at SW19.
Despite landing just 54% of their first serves, Cash and Glasspool were rock solid, dropping just seven points, and the British team didn't face a single break point.
Meanwhile, the Brits produced a devastating display on return, winning 81% of points on their opponents' second serve (13/16) and converting five of their nine break-point opportunities to seal a commanding victory on their Wimbledon return.
Cash and Glasspool are bidding to become the first team to defend the men's doubles title at Wimbledon since Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic in 2008 and 2009.
Awaiting them in the next round is all-French pairing of Corentin Moutet and Arthur Reymond who defeated British wild cards Johannus Monday and Harry Wendelken earlier today.
The third seeds will hope a return to the All England Club can reignite their best form after a mixed start to the 2026 season.
By the time they arrived at SW19 in 2025, the pair had already won five ATP Tour titles, including triumphs at the HSBC Championships and Lexus Eastbourne Open.
Their Wimbledon success saw them become the first all-British men's doubles champions since 1936, and they followed it up by claiming their maiden Masters 1000 crown at the National Bank Open just weeks later.
The Brits then captured their seventh and final ATP title of the season before rounding off a sensational year by being crowned year-end world No.1s for the first time in their careers.
However, this season has proved more challenging. Cash and Glasspool opened 2026 with a runner-up finish at the Qatar Open and a semi-final appearance in Dubai, but struggled to build momentum during the remainder of the hard-court swing.
Their fortunes improved on clay as they captured their first title of the year at the Barcelona Open, defeating Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Andrea Vavassori in straight sets in the final, but failed to carry that form with them over the last couple of months.
After second-round exits at both the Australian Open and Roland Garros, the reigning champions will hope the return to home soil can spark another deep run at Wimbledon.
Wins also rolled in for reigning Australian Open champions Neal Skupski and Christian Harrison today, who came through a testing opener against Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Mariano Kestelboim.
British wild cards Marcus Willis and David Stevenson are also into the second round after edging past Joe Salisbury and Ariel Behar.
