World Number 1 Novak Djokovic cruised into the third-round at
Wimbledon on Thursday after he defeated American
Bobby Reynolds 7-6, 6-3, 6-1 on Centre Court.
Reynolds was the last American standing, and his ouster marks the first time in over a century that no one from the USA advanced to the third round.
Although ranked 156th in the world,
Reynolds acquitted himself well against
Djokovic, routinely fighting off break points and testing
Djokovic in the first set.
Djokovic, the 2011
Wimbledon champion, avoided the fate of high seeds
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, and he remains the last former
Wimbledon winner in the men's portion of the bracket.
"It is a bit strange that so many top players lost in one or two days, but as I said, it is a Grand Slam and all the lower-ranked players have an extra motivation to perform their best. They have nothing to lose," he said
.
Defending champion
Serena Williams rolled into
Wimbledon's third round with a 6-3, 6-2 win over French teenager
Caroline Garcia on Thursday. The match took an hour and seven minutes.
Williams won her 33rd straight match as she aims for a sixth
Wimbledon singles crown. She'll next face Japan's Kimiko Date-Krumm, who, at 42 is the oldest woman in
Wimbledon's third round since the open era began in 1969, according to BBC Sport.
Williams lost just three points on serve in the first set, but
Garcia made her work hard throughout.
"I think Caroline's a really good player,"
Williams said, via BBC Sport. "I played her at the French Open, and she played really well, so it was good to get another win today.
"I really love these moments when I'm out there. I live and die for these moments, and it's really fun."
Also Thursday, American teenager Madison Keys beat 30th-seeded Mona Barthel of Germany 6-4, 6-2 to reach the third round in her Wimbledon debut. She'll face 2012 Wimbledon runner-up
Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland next.
Rain forces tourney to close Centre Court roof
Showers caused the tournament's first rain delay, prompting officials to close the retractable Centre Court roof installed in 2009.
Radwanska was beating Mathilde Johansson of France 6-1, 4-2 when the match was stopped to close the roof. After a half-hour delay,
Radwanska closed out the second set, 6-3.
