Federer and Kvitova feast on Wimbledon prey

 

LONDON, England (Reuters) – When Roger Federer’s game flows at Wimbledon and his opponent knows his place, you half expect him to slide into a deckchair at changeovers, pour cream on to some strawberries and tuck in.It was like that on Centre Court yesterday as the King of Cool began his quest for an eighth title at the All England Club with a nonchalant dismantling of Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur.
With the mercury soaring into the high 80s Fahrenheit as London prepares for a heat-wave, spectators were spared the full glare of the mid-afternoon sun thanks to the welcome shade produced by the partly-extended roof.
For 88th-ranked Dzumhur, though, there was no escape from the dazzling shot-making of the Swiss maestro who won 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.
It was a similar story earlier as reigning women’s champion Petra Kvitova scorched the grass with some searing serves in a 35-minute demolition of Dutchwoman Kiki Bertens.
She dropped only one point on serve in a commanding first-round show of force that augurs well for her chances of repeating her title charge of 12 months ago when she blew Eugenie Bouchard away in a one-sided final.
With umbrellas popping up around the grounds for shade not falling raindrops, London’s hottest day of the year so far also seemed to agree with Spain’s twice former champion Rafa Nadal.
Lurking in the draw as 10th seed after a mediocre year by his high standards, the 29-year-old bludgeoned his way past Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci, winning 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 on a sun-drenched Number One Court.
British flagbearer Andy Murray was due to commence his tournament against Kazakh Mikhail Kukushkin later.
World number two Federer, beginning his 63rd consecutive grand slam which he firmly believes can deliver a long-awaited 18th title, was given carte blanche to go through his exquisite repertoire against the willing Dzumhur — a player whose first tennis shots were played in bomb-ravaged Sarajevo.
The 23-year-old Dzumhur pushed Federer harder at the French Open this year, but looked like he had turned up uninvited to a Federer garden party on the world’s most famous lawn during a one-sided first set that was over in a flash.
He at least made Federer sweat after that, but not much as the free-swinging Swiss fired off winners and raced through service games in the blink of an eye.
“I’m sure in some crazy way he’s also enjoying himself; he can look back and say I played on Centre,” Federer, who has earned $90 million in prize money compared to the $500 000 banked by his opponent, told reporters after a 74th Wimbledon win.
Nadal supporters insist that but for injuries the Spaniard would already have matched Federer’s grand slam haul rather than be three short, but they would struggle to make a case for their man making tennis look as easy as his great rival.
But there were hints on yesterday against Bellucci that Nadal is returning to the kind of form that saw him beat Federer in an epic 2008 final and then regain the title in 2010.
“For me the conditions were great. It’s difficult to think about a better day to play tennis here in Wimbledon.”
He was not getting carried away though, especially after several early blow-outs at Wimbledon fresh in the memory.
“Second round, that’s all,” said Nadal, who next plays Germany’s dreadlocked Dustin Brown who once beat him on grass.
“I am a little bit more confident now than I was few months ago. Obviously victories help.”

 

By Martyn Herman

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