Serena, Soderling survive, Djokovic has it easy

London: Defending champion Serena Williams beat Simona Halep in a comfortable 3-6 6-2 6-1 victory today. The American seventh seed, just four matches into her comeback after being out for forty-nine weeks because of injury and serious health issues, was initially blown off her stride by the tenacious Romanian teenager before breezing into the third round. [caption id=“attachment_30546” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Serena Williams celebrates after defeating Simona Halep. Toby Melville/Reuters”] [/caption] Despite being largely outplayed in the opener, there was never a sense of panic and once she began middling the ball sweetly she moved smoothly through the gears. “It was a little windy out there today and I was a little tight,” the American, who has only once failed to reach the third round in 44 grand slam appearances, said. “I just want to play longer matches so I can get more practise,” added Williams, who had sobbed into her towel after also needing three sets to beat Aravane Rezai on Tuesday. The trauma of a calamitous 11 months in which she first lacerated her foot on broken glass and then suffered life-threatening blood clots on her lung overwhelmed her in the first round but this was much more like the old steely Williams. While the 19 unforced errors she committed will be a minor concern, her swings were clean off both wings and her serve was grooved despite the gusty conditions. The 58th ranked Halep, playing her first Wimbledon, offered enough to suggest she can rise higher in the rankings. She began with real intent and capitalised on some wayward play from her opponent to break for 3-1 when a Williams backhand whistled over the baseline. Williams squandered three match points at 5-0 in a one-sided third set but made no mistake in the following game when she powered down a first serve to end the contest. She will play 26th seed Maria Kirilenko in the next round. Djokovic outguns Anderson Novak Djokovic looked a man on a mission when he took just 15 minutes to blast to a 5-0 lead over Kevin Anderson at Wimbledon and was somewhat frustrated when his opponent eventually made him work for almost two hours for his victory. The number two seed eventually reached round three by triumphing 6-3 6-4 6-2, his second straight-sets win of the week, after another display of clinical efficiency on a breezy Court One. Such is his heightened level of expectation in the wake of his recently-ended 43-match winning streak that Djokovic still did not look entirely happy, berating himself after a couple of late miscues. “I may be hard on myself but I think every player is looking for perfection all the time and I’m really satisfied with my performances in the first two rounds,” the Serb told reporters. “Mentally I do have a different approach to Wimbledon than I had years before. It’s obvious because of the winning streak that my confidence is very high and it makes it easier to step on the court because you believe in yourself and you know that you can win against anybody.” Soderling survives dramatic Hewitt test For two sets Robin Soderling gave Lleyton Hewitt a gilt-edged opportunity to spring a major Wimbledon upset without even having to call on his copious reserves of heart and guts. But the Swede remembered he was the world’s fifth-best player in the nick of time, denying the Australian former champion a third-round place with a 6-7 3-6 7-5 6-4 6-4 victory in nearly four hours under the Centre Court roof. “I knew if I could raise my game after the first two sets I had a good chance,” Soderling told reporters. “I thought I was a bit unlucky to lose the first set, I knew I was serving pretty well. It was nice to see him (Hewitt) injury-free and it was the best match we have ever played. He is a great fighter.” Reuters