There were signs on Monday
At times Murray limped around the baseline but luckily for the defending champion, that problem disappeared the moment the ball was in play as he easily outclassed maverick Wimbledon debutant Alexander Bublik 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the second round.
"My hip felt good. It's a little bit sore, but I was moving really good on the court today," said Murray, who is the first British man to be seeded number one at Wimbledon since Bunny Austin in 1939.
"If you're in a little bit of pain, but you can still run as you normally do, that doesn't affect how you play."
Asked why he was limping between points, he added: "Whether it's something that's just happened... like, subconsciously, my hip's been sore, I have no idea. I'm not in a lot of pain when I'm walking, that's for sure."
There was so much uncertainty about the Scot's form in the days running up to the grasscourt major, one British bookmaker had declared Murray 'friendless' - with punters backing him to lose early rather than win the title for the third time.
Some doomsayers even feared he could become only the third men's defending champion -- after Manuel Santana in 1967 and Lleyton Hewitt in 2003 -- to lose in the first round.
Others highlighted how Murray was on a two-match losing streak against players classified as lucky losers - as Bublik was having lost in the final round of qualifying but made it into the main draw thanks to another player's withdrawal.
Japan's Kei Nishikori breezed through his first-round clash with Italy's Marco Cecchinato 6-2, 6-2, 6-0 on Monday, demolishing an opponent who was playing his first senior-level match on grass.
The ninth seed did not disappoint the legion of Japanese fans who gave him a hero's welcome as he walked on to Court Twelve, outclassing his rival from the first point when he powered a backhand winner down the line.
Cecchinato, ranked 102nd, could not handle Nishikori's thundering drives off both wings, with the 24-year-old Italian's one-handed backhand proving particularly fragile.
Nishikori, 27, showed off his full repertoire of shots in a faultless third set which he peppered with delicate drop shots and ended with an emphatic volley.
Japan's highest-ever ranked player did not show any sign of the injuries that have plagued him on grass courts in recent years. His toughest challenge of the day was making his way off the court as he was mobbed by dozens of fans seeking autographs.
Rafa Nadal moved seamlessly from months of claycourt success to a satisfyingly smooth first-round victory on grass as he opened his Wimbledon campaign with a commanding 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Australian John Millman on Monday.
Nadal missed the warm-up grass tournament at Queen's Club to look after his battered body following victories at the French Open and in Madrid, Monte Carlo and Barcelona but he looked comfortable on the faster surface and displayed the full array of groundstrokes that have earned him two Wimbledon titles.
Millman, who missed the first five months of the season with a groin injury, played his part in some entertaining rallies, particularly in the first two sets as Nadal, playing conservatively, worked on his rhythm.
However, the fourth-seeded Spaniard, who missed last year's Wimbledon through injury and was playing his first grass tournament match for two years, was always in control and seemed to be more concerned about his own shots than anything his opponent could dish up.
Nadal really hit his stride in the final set once he had mastered his timing, smashing a series of blistering forehands that left Millman as much a spectator as those crammed into Number One Court.
"It was a very positive match for me, a good start," Nadal told reporters.
Twice Wimbledon semifinalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga breezed into the second round with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 victory over British wildcard Cameron Norrie, whose first grand slam appearance ended in a swift and brutal exit.
Tsonga, the 12th seed, was dumped out in the second round last year but was never forced out of second gear as he swatted Norrie aside on Court Two, exposing all the Briton's inexperience.
Marin Cilic's power game proved far too much for Philipp Kohlschreiber as the Croatian seventh seed swept his German opponent aside 6-4, 6-2, 6-3.
Tommy Haas might have been hoping that his Wimbledon swansong would have a fairytale ending. It was not to be. The 39-year-old German, awarded a wildcard for his 16th and final appearance at the All England Club , had to accept his body was "not cooperating anymore" as he slumped to a 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 first-round defeat by Belgian qualifier Ruben Bemelmans.
Stan Wawrinka's Wimbledon hopes were shredded in the first round as the fifth seed, hobbled by a niggling knee injury, came up against one of tennis's new generation of heavy hitters in the shape of Russian Daniil Medvedev.
The Swiss three times grand slam champion was out-gunned by 21-year-old Medvedev, who had the Centre Court crowd on their feet as he pulled off a dazzling array of winners to wrap up a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory on his first Wimbledon appearance.
Yet how much of the stunning upset was down to Medvedev's ability to fire freely from both flanks and how much of it was down to Wawrinka's discomfort was hard to tell.
The Russian, making only his third grand slam appearance and who is ranked 46 places below the world number three, was full of energy as he hauled his giant frame around the court.
After wrapping up a memorable victory in two hours and 12 minutes, he bent down and kissed the turf. "I have no words to describe this. I guess this memory will be with me forever," he told reporters.
Australian 20th seed Nick Kyrgios, who retired injured from Wimbledon on Monday, knew he was struggling with a hip injury even as he came out on court but he wanted to give his favorite tournament a shot.
The talented 22-year-old called for the physio and packed up after losing the first two sets to doubles specialist Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-3, 6-4, having hardly run for any of the Frenchman's peppering of drop shots, lobs and passing shots.
"I kind of knew I was in trouble. I have been feeling my hip ever since I fell over at Queen's. Never got it right. I was doing everything I could to help it, but just not enough time," a despondent Kyrgios told reporters.
In the women’s draw, five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams came through a tricky first-round test against Belgian Elise Mertens, emerging with a 7-6 (7), 6-4 victory.
The 37-year-old American has had a stressful build-up to the tournament after police last week blamed her driving for a fatal motoring accident in Florida that led to the death of a 78-year-old man.
A nervous Mertens struggled early, going 3-0 down in the first set, but the 21-year-old, ranked 54th in the world, battled back to force a tiebreak which Williams won 9-7.
Petra Kvitova skipped into the second round, the twice champion beating Johanna Larsson 6-3, 6-4 on a sun-bathed Centre Court.
Playing only her third event of the year after recovering from a knife attack in December, the Czech 11th seed used her swinging serve to great effect on the main showcourt, signing off with a heavy ace.
Latvian Jelena Ostapenko soared past Belarussian Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the opening set but eventually had to settle for a topsy-turvy 6-0, 1-6, 6-3 first round win to equal her best showing at Wimbledon.
Naomi Osaka survived a second-set tiebreaker to beat Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-3, 7-6 (3) for her first victory at Wimbledon. Kurumi Nara was defeated by Canada's Francoise Abanda 6-2, 6-4 and Nao Hibino's bid for her first win at a Grand Slam event ended in a 6-4, 6-2 defeat to American 17th seed Madison Keys.
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