A last-minute change of opponent was no problem for Emma Raducanu on Day 1 of Wimbledon on Monday, as the 2021 US Open champion toppled lucky loser Renata Zarazua 7-6(0), 6-3 to make a winning return to the All England Club.

After missing the Championships 12 months ago while she recovered from surgery on her ankle and wrists, Raducanu was slated to open her tournament against No.22 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova, but her seeded opponent withdrew in the early hours of play on Monday with an illness, leading to the former Top 10 player to instead face Zarazua, the World No.98 who lost in the final round of qualifying and has yet to win a tour-level match on grass.

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Despite also being an underdog by ranking due to her current perch of World No.135 -- Alexandrova reached the fourth round of Wimbledon 12 months ago, and twice won the grass-court Libema Open in 's-Hertogenbosch -- Raducanu took advantage of the gulf in grass-court experience between the two to earn her fifth career Wimbledon victory in her seventh main-draw match at her home Grand Slam tournament.

She saved four of the five break points she faced, and never lost serve in the second set, en route to wrapping up the win in 1 hour and 57 minutes.

From Raducanu's first Wimbledon win since 2022, to what's at stake for the Brit in the next round, read on for more of our top takeaways.

A change in opponent also meant a change in styles: Switching her prepared tactics for an offensive-minded Alexandrova to ones for a defensive-minded Zarazua proved a challenge for Raducanu, she said. 

"It was an incredibly difficult match. I've barely, if ever, played a defender who's literally landed the ball on the baseline or just kept getting the ball back. It took a lot of strength to get over the line," the Brit said in her on-court interview. "It's not easy when you're not in the draw in the morning, and then you're playing on Centre Court, so all props to her.

"I found out at like 10:30 today. For the last three days, we've been planning, setting up practices for similar opponents, and then all of a sudden, it's a change of plans. It took a little adjusting to find my feet ... but I really enjoyed being back here."

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But the first match at a major remained a happy hunting ground for Raducanu: Raducanu is now 8-1 in the first round of Grand Slam tournaments in her career, and will next face Belgian Elise Mertens, who was a three-set winner over Japan’s Nao Hibino in her own first-round match.

The two have never played, but Mertens has only lost before the third round in a Grand Slam tournament three times in the last 25 majors. Raducanu, meanwhile, is seeking to pass the second round of a major for the first time since winning the US Open in 2021. 

"I think that each match I win should be celebrated a lot. I think for me, 'cause I know how hard matches are to win, to come by," Raducanu said. "I think that now, yeah, having had a few wins under my belt, I'm like really cherishing every single one because I know how difficult it is to be on the flip side of it.

"Results-wise I have no expectations. I just have expectations of myself to really put myself on the line on the court and fight and not let any frustrations get to me."