Maria Sharapova has advanced to the fourth round of the ladies’ singles after bulldozing her way past Alison Riske in one hour and nine minutes on a day beset by bad weather.
Earlier in the week, the No.5 seed had suggested the 23-year-old, whom she had beaten in their only previous meeting on grass, in Birmingham four years ago, would be a tricky opponent. "She stays down really low, hits really flat from both sides and has had steady results on the surface. It's going to be a challenge,” the Russian had warned. Although Sharapova suffered an initial minor hiccup - she was broken in the opening game of the first set – she never faced a break point again and promptly rattled off 11 games on the trot to triumph 6-3, 6-0 in little over an hour.
The second set lasted just 27 minutes. Fortunately for the spectators, there were plenty of other things to keep them occupied during the whitewash. Although the Centre Court roof had been closed during Rafael Nadal's match, the fans still pointed, took pictures and commented on the sound of the rain lashing down. The presence of a certain chap called David Beckham in the Royal Box also prompted fervent finger-pointing and camera clicking.
The footballer’s attendance did not go unnoticed by the five-time Grand Slam title holder who has met him a couple of times. “He's a great guy,” Sharapova said. “I mean, besides being an incredible football player, he has so much that he's done in his career, having a family, maintaining so many things off the court. Really nice person to chat to.
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