Roger Federer continued his Wimbledon waltz as the women’s No 2 seed was sent packing. Michael Hincks brings you three talking points from Wednesday’s action, and three more to look out for on Thursday.
THREE TODAY
Federer serves Lacko a lesson
It took a few games for Federer to warm up on Centre Court, but once he found his groove, world No 73 Lukas Lacko could not rise to his opponent’s inimitable level.
The Federer serve continues to both baffle and conquer. He offered Lacho zero break-point opportunities, while the Swiss delivered 16 aces in total with a first-serve percentage of 70, up seven on his 2018 average to date.
Add 48 winners to the mix and it made for a masterful performance from the 36-year-old. It will take a far greater effort to deny him Wimbledon title No 9.
Flying ants (and Makarova) bug Wozniacki
Wimbledon proved a bugbear for Caroline Wozniacki once more on Wednesday, with the No 2 seed crashing out to Ekaterina Makarova in three sets. Thousands of flying ants descended on Court One during their match, and the Dane took a particular aversion to the critters, telling the umpire she wanted to focus on playing tennis, and not eating bugs.
And while the 27-year-old took to using insect repellent, it was Makarova who fought off the challenge of Wozniacki, who has still yet to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
Pliskova passes first real test
A world No 1 just one year ago, there was always a question as to which Karolina Pliskova would turn up at Wimbledon. However, the No 7 seed silenced her doubters, for now, with a supreme performance on Centre Court against two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka.
Pliskova never gave Azarenka a sniff on serve during her 6-3 6-3 victory, and it was the perfect way for the Czech to gear up for matches against seeded opponents. Mihaela Buzarnescu is up next in the third round, with Venus Williams or Kiki Bertens waiting in the fourth.
THREE TOMORROW
Edmund out to book Djokovic date
Kyle Edmund impressed in his first-round win over Alex Bolt, and faces another qualifier in Bradley Khan on Thursday as he looks to seal a place in the third round for the first time. Should he brush the world No 168 aside, and Novak Djokovic beat Horacio Zeballos, then the pair would clash on Saturday in what is destined to be a Centre Court showdown.
The ever-improving Djokovic is among the main Wimbledon contenders, but Edmund will be buoyed by his victory over the Serb when they played in Madrid earlier this year. First, though, the British No 1 must deal with Khan, who made light work of Yuichi Sugita in the first round.
Old friends reunited?
Australian duo Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic are one game away from facing each other for the first time on the men’s tour. The pair have drifted in recent years, with Kyrgios admitting last year that the temperamental Tomic had lost his way, but the 25-year-old has cut a rejuvenated figure at Wimbledon, and that hasn’t gone unnoticed.
On Tuesday, Kyrgios said: “I feel like kind of when I watch him play now, a bit of weight off his shoulders. When I watched him [on Tuesday], he looked like he was having a bit of fun. It's good to see him back out there because on the grass he's so talented.”
Kyrgios faces Robin Haase on Thursday while Tomic faces 24th seed Kei Nishikori, meaning their wait for a first encounter could well go on. Regardless, the Tomic-Nishikori match will be one to watch out for on the outside courts.
Stern test for Konta
When Serena Williams was handed the No 25 seed before the tournament started, world No 32 Dominika Cibulkova was the unlucky party who missed out on a seeding. Consequently, it’s British No 1 Johanna Konta, the 22nd seed, who now finds herself playing Cibulkova in the second round.
Of course, it could have been Serena, but Konta will be cursing her luck that she is the only player set to play another top-32 ranked woman in the second round. She would do well to overcome the former number four too, and with Elise Mertens and Simona Halep waiting as potential third and fourth-round opponents, Konta’s route could not be trickier. We’ll see on Thursday whether she can put aside recent form, and recreate the heroics of last year’s run to the semi-finals.