Djokovic zooms into Rd 2
Top seed Novak Djokovic proved rock solid as he cruised past Germany’s Florian Mayer 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 to reach the second round of Wimbledon on Tuesday.
The Serb broke 34th-ranked Mayer’s opening service game and never looked troubled on Centre Court, wrapping up victory by swiping away a winning forehand.
Djokovic was back in action for the first time since losing a semi-final epic against Rafa Nadal at the French Open and looked sharp on the lush grass. His next opponent will be an American in the form of either qualifier Bobby Reynolds or wildcard Steve Johnson.
In the women’s singles, Serena Williams racked-up her 32nd successive win to reach the second round where she was joined by 42-year-old Kimiko Date-Krumm whose love of tea is fuelling her longevity.
World no. 1 and defending champion Williams, chasing a sixth Wimbledon title and 17th major, cruised to a 6-1, 6-3 win over Luxembourg’s Mandy Minella.
Her 57-minute romp on Centre Court briefly deflected attention away from the storm surrounding her controversial comments on a US high school rape case and the fall-out from her criticism of Maria Sharapova’s love life. The 31-year-old took out her frustrations on the hapless Minella, the world no. 92 who has never defeated a top-30 player, let alone one of the calibre of Williams, whose French Open title three weeks ago took her majors haul to 16.
Tuesday’s 32nd successive win took her to within just three of the record set by older sister Venus in 2000. “I never think about the run, I just treat every match like a new one,” said Williams.
Date-Krumm, just three months shy of her 43rd birthday and the oldest woman in the main draw, made the second round with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Carina Witthoeft, an 18-year-old German qualifier, who was just four when the Japanese star made her Wimbledon debut in 1989.
Li Na, the Chinese sixth seed, raced into the second round with a comprehensive 6-1, 6-1 defeat of Dutchwoman Michaella Krajicek. Li’s compatriot Zheng Jie missed the chance of setting up a rematch with Williams when she lost 6-3, 6-4 to 100-ranked Garcia. Earlier, Argentina eighth seed Juan Martin del Potro saw off Spain’s Albert Ramos 6-2, 7-5, 6-1.
Divij, Raja crash outDivij Sharan and Purav Raja frittered away a two-set lead to spoil their Grand Slam debut as they bowed out of the men’s doubles event at the Wimbledon, losing a marathon opening round match here. The Indian qualifiers lost 7-6 (4), 6-2, 3-6, 4-6, 4-6 against American Nicholas Monroe and Simon Stadler of Germany on Monday night.
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