Djokovic cruises through to third round
Novak Djokovic became the third member of the ’Big Four’ to make it through to round three at Wimbledon after sweeping past South Africa’s Kevin Anderson 6-3 6-4 6-2.
The Serbian joined Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray in the last 32 while Roger Federer headed into his third-round match against unseeded Frenchman Adrian Mannarino at 7.45pm this evening.
Djokovic lost just five games in his opening win over Jeremy Chardy and never looked like surrendering a set against Anderson on Court One in front of a packed crowd.
Anderson could only win four points in the first five games as Djokovic surged into a 5-0 first-set lead before wrapping up the game in routine style.
Djokovic could have lost his way after seeing his 43-match unbeaten run came to an end last month, but his two wins in SW19 have left him full of confidence ahead of his next match against number 32 seed Marcos Baghdatis.
“I’ve had two straight-set wins in the opening two rounds in Wimbledon. You couldn’t ask for more. I feel great,” said second seed Djokovic.
“Because of the winning streak that I had, my confidence is very high.
“It makes it easier to step on the court because you believe in yourself. You know that you’re one of the best players in the world and you know that you can win against anybody. That is my mindset.
“Everything has come together really, mentally, physically, and game-wise now.”
Lleyton Hewitt was left heartbroken after he surrendered a two-set lead to Robin Soderling in an epic encounter on Centre Court that lasted almost four hours.
The Australian’s future had been in question after struggling with a foot injury for the last year, but he was in no mood to call time on his career after today’s 6-7 (7/5) 3-6 7-5 6-4 6-4 defeat.
The 2002 champion said: “I love competing. You’re a long time retired and I hear that from a lot of great athletes. As long as my body is close to 100% I want to go out there and compete. I still feel like I can give these top guys as much trouble as anyone out there.”
Taiwan’s Yen-Hsun Lu produced a shock on Court 18 as he knocked out 13th seed Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7/5) 6-4 6-4, while Slovakia’s Karol Beck also upset the odds to overcome 26th seed Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 7-6 (7/5) 6-4 3-6 6-4.
Juan Martin Del Potro will line against Gilles Simon in round three after dismissing Olivier Rochus 6-7 (9/7) 6-1 6-0 6-4, recovering from a set down overnight in impressive style.
David Nalbandian is likely to face Federer in the last 32 having come through his match against Andreas Haider-Maurer with a four-set win, 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-4.
Xavier Malisse knocked out 20th seed Florian Mayer and Michael Llodra sent Brazilian Ricardo Mello home with a four-set win.
Cyprus’ Baghdatis easily swept aside Andreas Seppi in straight sets, and Fernando Gonzalez of Chile also breezed through with a disciplined victory over Rik De Voest.
