Top-seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic produced a flawless performance to ease past Thanasi Kokkinakis in the gentlemen's singles second-round match at Wimbledon 2022 on Wednesday. (More Tennis News)
Djokovic, 35, took two hours and three minutes to register a 6-1, 6-4, 6- 2 win over 79th-ranked Australian at All England Club, London.
This was their second meeting, after French Open 2015. Djokovic also won that round of 16 match in straight sets 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.
On the opening day of the 13th edition of the world's oldest Grand Slam tournament, the Serbian dropped a set to beat 81st-ranked South Korean Kwon Soon-woo.
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But it was smooth sailing for the 20-time Grand Slam winner on the third day. Novak Djokovic dominated from the word go, breaking the Australian's first serve for a 2-0 lead. It was followed by another break in the sixth game in the first set, which lasted just 31 minutes.
Djokovic broke Kokkinakis in the third game of the second set, then forced the Australian to save four service points. The set lasted 52 minutes.
In the third set, Djokovic broke Kokkinakis twice, in the first and fifth games, then sealed the win in the second match point in 40 minutes.
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Such was his dominance that Kokkinakis managed to create a lone break point which turned out to be the final game of the match.
Novak Djokovic will face the winner of Alejandro Tabilo of Chile and Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia in the third round.
But French Open runner-up and third-seeded Casper Ruud lost to Ugo Humbert of France 3-6, 6-2, 7-5, 6-4.
Other seeded players to make an exit from the gentlemen's singles event are: Hubert Hurkacz (7), Pablo Carreno Busta (16), Felix Auger-Aliassime (6), Grigor Dimitrov (18), Holger Rune (24), Dan Evans (28) and Sebastian Baez (31).
In the ladies' singles. second-seeded Anett Kontaveit of Estonia was eliminated in the second round, losing to Jule Niemeier of Germany 6-4, 6-0.
2017 Wimbledon champion and nine-seeded Spaniard Garbine Muguruza also crashed out, losing to unseeded Greet Minnen of Belgium in straight sets 6–4, 6–0.
Other seeded players who crashed out of the tournament so far are: Danielle Collins (7), Martina Trevisan (22), Beatriz Haddad Maia (23), Kaia Kanepi (31), Belinda Bencic (14), Jil Teichmann (18), Camila Giorgi (21), Yulia Putintseva (27), Shelby Rogers (30) and Anhelina Kalinina (29).
Seven-time champion Serena Williams, competing as a Wild Card, lost in her first round match against Harmony Tan on Tuesday.
