LONDON (TIP): Novak Djokovic raced into the Wimbledon third round for the ninth year running, with a 6-2 6-2 6-1 drubbing of tournament debutant Adam Pavlasek on a sweltering Court One.
The three-time champion pinned his Czech opponent behind the baseline with unerring groundstrokes off both wings, moving him from side to side and forcing error after error.
Pavlasek was playing his childhood idol and the 22-year-old, ranked 136, appeared overawed by the occasion. He rarely tested the Serbian second seed, who is looking to salvage his season after losing his Australian and French Open crowns.
Djokovic will next play Latvian Ernests Gulbis who beat Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro 6-4 6-4 7-6(3). German 27th seed Mischa Zverev beat Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin 6-1 6-2 2-6 3-6 6-4 after an intense battle that lasted over three hours.
In the women’s draw, American Coco Vandeweghe beat German Tatjana Maria 6-4 6-2 in their second-round match. Svetlana Kuznetsova needed just over an hour to book a spot in the third round, beating fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-0 7-5.