Serena Williams of the USA moves on to Round 3 defeating Caroline Garcia of France.(Photo Julian Finney Getty Images)
WIMBLEDON England (AP) Serena Williams avoided the upset and injury problems suffered by her two top rivals on Thursday easing into the third round at Wimbledon.
Williams defeated Caroline Garcia of France 6 3 6 2 a day after No. 2 Victoria Azarenka withdrew with an injury and Maria Sharapova suffered a surprising upset loss to Michelle Larcher de Brtio.
Williams will face 42 year old Kimiko Date Krumm in the third round.
DAY 3 Wimbledon wobbles on Wednesday
The Japanese veteran became the oldest player to reach the third round at Wimbledon in the Open era with a 6 4 7 5 victory against Alexandra Cadantu of Romania.
She's incredibly inspiring the 31 year old Williams said about Date Krumm. She's so fit she's done so well. I've never played her before. I watched her play when I was super young growing up.
Date Krumm is the second oldest woman to have won a match at Wimbledon after Martina Navratilova who was 47 when she reached the second round in 2004. She took a 12 year break from tennis before returning in 2008.
I don't know how she's able to do so well Williams said.
On the men's side No. 7 Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic defeated Daniel Brands of Germany 7 6 (8 6) 6 4 6 2 and no. 8 Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina defeated Jesse Levine of Canada 6 2 7 6 (9 7) 6 3.
Whether Williams can keep playing for another decade remains to be seen but she certainly doesn't show any sign of slowing down in her 30s. The defending champion is looking for a sixth Wimbledon title.
The 19 year old Garcia is seen as a potential future star in women's tennis with a game especially suited for grass but couldn't force a single break point against the American's strong serve on Court 1.
She's incredibly promising she does everything well Williams said. Her serve is amazing so I knew it would be a good match on the grass.
After that wild Wednesday which also saw seven players retiring or withdrawing with injuries a feeling of normality returned to the All England Club.
Sixth seeded Li Na of China did look in trouble for a while before overcoming a poor second set to beat Simona Halep of Romania 6 2 1 6 6 0.
Halep needed treatment on her lower back after the first set but still dominated the second before Li the former French Open champ found her stride again in the third.
Welcome to the crazy women's tennis tour Li said.
Other seeds to win included No. 14 Samantha Stosur and No. 18 Dominika Cibulkova. Bernard Tomic of Australia whose father and coach John Tomic has been barred from tournaments after allegedly assaulting his son's hitting partner also advanced by beating American James Blake 6 3 6 4 7 5.
There was one injury retirement Michael Llodra of France had to quit after losing the first set 7 5 against 23rd seeded Andreas Seppi of Italy.
That was the eighth retirement or walkover of the second round in singles play equaling the record for a single round at Wimbledon in the Open era. The International Tennis Federation said eight players also quit in the first round in 2008.
The record for a Grand Slam tournament is nine players withdrawing or retiring from the first round at the 2011 U.S. Open.
Top ranked Novak Djokovic was scheduled to play Bobby Reynolds of the United States later.
GALLERY WIMBLEDON DAY 4
Last SlideNext SlideCopyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published broadcast rewritten or redistributed.
No comments:
Post a Comment