Andy Roddick maintained his record of never having lost in the first round at Wimbledon - but he was far from convincing against France's Jeremy Chardy on Tuesday.

Roddick, twice a beaten finalist at the All England Club, opened the match with two aces and raced into a 5-0 lead for the loss of just three points in 12 minutes on Centre Court.

But after taking the first set 6-3 and the second on a tie-break, Roddick lost the third set and looked bereft of ideas before a timely 'comfort break' helped the former world number one regain his composure and secure a 6-3 7-6 4-6 6-3 victory.

Meanwhile, Juan Martin Del Potro eased his way into the second round with a straight-sets victory over Arnaud Clement on Court One.

The Argentinian fifth seed dropped just six games on his way to a 6-3 6-1 6-2 victory over the Frenchman in blazing sunshine.

Del Potro broke six times and hit 27 winners against Clement, who had originally been drawn to face last year's champions Rafael Nadal until the Spaniard withdrew at the weekend.

A semi-finalist at the recent French Open, Del Potro has not gone beyond the second round at Wimbledon in two previous appearances.

He will face either Lleyton Hewitt or Robby Ginepri in the next round.