Pakistan, June 30 -- World number one Jannik Sinner survived an almighty scare as he began his Wimbledon title defence with a five-set comeback victory over inspired opponent Miomir Kecmanovic.

One month on from a seismic second-round loss at the French Open, four-time major winner Sinner recovered from an error-strewn start and an awkward fall to overcome his 50th-ranked opponent 4-6 6-3 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 6-3 after a tense three and a half hours.

Sinner opted against contesting a grass tournament in the lead-up to Wimbledon, with this his first match since an extraordinary collapse against Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo, whom he had led by two sets and 5-1 at Roland Garros. Having appeared to physically shut down in the stifling Paris hea...