Serena sails past Tomova and into round three
Serena Williams made short work of Viktoriya Tomova as she eased into the third round of Wimbledon in straight sets.
Having seen off Arantxa Rus in straights in the first round, Williams – controversially seeded 25th despite having spent much of the year off following the birth of her first child – was typically destructive in seeing off the qualifier 6-1 6-4 in an hour and six minutes.
Tomova, competing in just the second grand slam main draw of her career, never looked like being a match for the 23-time major winner, who has yet to receive a real test of her credentials as a contender for the Venus Rosewater Dish.
The winner of Kristina Mladenovic’s clash with Tatjana Maria awaits in round three, but a prospective fourth-round clash with Madison Keys, seen as one of her successors at the top of American women’s tennis, is more likely to provide a clearer indication of whether she is capable of winning a tournament with just three of the top eight seeds still in the draw.
Third round spot sealed in 66 minutes
Another step towards an eighth #Wimbledon title, @serenawilliams defeats Viktoriya Tomova 6-1, 6-4 on Centre Court pic.twitter.com/bjEhP7hcod
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 4, 2018
A foreboding sign of things to come for Tomova was provided in her first service game as a wonderful cross-court forehand put Williams up 30-0, though the Bulgarian was able to survive a break point and hold.
However, Tomova could not fend off the second break point she faced, which came on the back of a double fault, firing long to hand Williams the initiative.
Williams grew increasingly brutal in dispatching the Tomova serve in the fifth game of the contest and was equally dismissive of an attempted lob from her opponent, an emphatic smash bringing about the double break, before Tomova thudded a forehand into the net to concede the set.
Tomova played with more freedom and belief in the second, saving three break points at the start of the set, but two games later she was broken to love courtesy of a limp netted backhand.
Still the increasingly competitive nature of the contest was relished by Williams, who let out a roar after a cross-court backhand winner brought up another break point that Tomova saved, before applauding the 23-year-old as she survived a match point and forced her to successfully serve it out.
