Iga Swiatek put her emotional first-round struggles behind her with a dominant 6-1, 6-3 victory over former world number one Karolina Pliskova in the Wimbledon second round on Thursday. The reigning champion needed just 70 minutes to dismantle Pliskova, who returned to the tour this year after a long-term injury absence.
"For sure the first round was really emotional but today I felt like it's another day at the office, I need to be ready, be sharp," said Swiatek, according to tournament reports. The Pole, who struggled to hold back tears after battling past Taylor Townsend in the first round, was back to her ruthless best.
Swiatek's Consistent Grand Slam Record
The 25-year-old third seed has reached at least the third round in each of her past 26 Grand Slam appearances, a streak dating back to her second-round loss at the 2019 US Open. She will next face the Philippines' Alexandra Eala, who became the first woman from her country to reach the third round of a Grand Slam by beating Maya Joint 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 on Court Three.
"I think the atmosphere today was amazing, it was electric, respectful and all that I could have hoped for," said the 21-year-old Eala, the 29th seed. Joint had previously defeated Serena Williams in the first round.
Anisimova, Keys, and Rybakina Advance
Last year's runner-up Amanda Anisimova came back from a break down in the third set to beat Sofia Kenin in a deciding tie-break. Former Australian Open champion Madison Keys ended home interest in the women's singles, defeating Britain's Katie Swan in straight sets.
Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, continued her bid to take the world number one ranking from Aryna Sabalenka next week with a 6-1, 6-2 rout of American Caty McNally. Rybakina next meets Belgian 25th seed Elise Mertens for a place in the last 16.
Zverev Powers Through
Alexander Zverev was in top form, winning 6-1, 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) against Valentin Royer. The German, who ended his long wait for a maiden Grand Slam title at the French Open last month, has never performed well at Wimbledon, failing to get past the last 16 in nine previous appearances.
"If I keep playing like this I definitely think it can happen this year," said Zverev, according to reports. "In tennis you need to have a short-term memory, whether it's good or bad." The second seed has a golden opportunity this year, with Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic in the other half of the draw and fourth seed Ben Shelton already out.
Other Matches
American sixth seed Taylor Fritz continued his strong record at Wimbledon, defeating compatriot Patrick Kypson 6-2, 6-2, 7-5 to reach the third round. Fritz has made at least the quarter-finals in three of the past four years and lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the semis 12 months ago.
Fifth-seeded Australian Alex de Minaur breezed through with a dominant straight-sets victory over French veteran Adrian Mannarino. Rising Spanish star Rafael Jodar returned to court after a match delayed by darkness on Wednesday, winning the last two sets to complete a comeback victory over Pablo Carreno Busta.
Former runner-up Matteo Berrettini defeated French number one Arthur Fils in four sets, while this year's Roland Garros losing finalist Flavio Cobolli also progressed. Britain's future queen Princess Catherine attended the tournament on Thursday, greeting fans before watching some of the action.
