Rosberg tops time sheets in Austria
wilderness for
“After my third surgery, I’ve been trying to play tennis again. It is like my second or third career in my short life,” said Del Potro, 27, who will next face Lucas Pouille.
“I didn’t know if I could be in the top position again after all the injuries.”
Serena Williams composed herself after a first-set loss and a burst of anger to vanquish tenacious fellow American Christina McHale 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 6-4 in a nail-biting secondround match.
The defending champion finally ran out a winner against the world No 65, marching on in her quest to emulate Steffi Graf’s Open era record of 22 Grand Slam singles titles.
Williams thought she had won the first set and was walking back to her chair after a McHale forehand was called long with the world No 1 5-4 and 40-30 up. To her chagrin, however, a Hawkeye challenge showed the ball brushing the baseline.
McHale went on to win the game and force a tiebreak in which a rattled Williams made a string of errors, including two double faults, before burying a forehand into the net to lose the set.
But the 34-year-old put the disappointment behind her and showed the battling form that has won her six Wimbledon crowns to take the next two sets. SPIELBERG: Formula One leader Nico Rosberg clocked the fastest lap yet around the scenic Red Bull Ring yesterday as world champions Mercedes dominated Austrian Grand Prix practice.
The German set a best time of one minute and 7.373 seconds – 0.357 of a second quicker than teammate and triple world champion Lewis Hamilton – in the morning and was again top in the afternoon with 1:07.967.
On a day of variables, with the weather swinging from bright sunshine to torrential rain and back again, and with waves of water rippling down the pit straight, Rosberg did not falter.
Hamilton, 24 points behind Rosberg with 13 races remaining, was second in both sessions.
“The new asphalt seems to be suiting our car quite well, maybe better even than the old,” said Rosberg, who will be chasing his sixth win in nine races tomorrow.
“But tyre usage will be the decisive factor this weekend.”
Hamilton, who has finished second behind Rosberg in the past two years in Austria, said his day had been more tricky.
“It started coming together this morning but then the rain in the second session meant we had to adapt our programme,” said the Briton.
“Luckily the high track temperatures meant the circuit dried out very quickly, so I was able to get more running on the ultra-soft tyre before the session finished and to get a feel for the balance and performance.”
Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who is set for a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change, was third and fourth respectively after a big spin in the afternoon.
Fellow German Nico Hulkenberg was third in the second session for Mercedes-powered Force India.
Since Austria returned to the calendar in 2014, after an 11-year absence, Rosberg has been the only winner and Mercedes-engined cars have swept the podium.
Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo, celebrating his 27th birthday, was fifth fastest.
Whereas Rosberg had a clean first session, Hamilton spun into the gravel and triggered the virtual safety car. France’s Romain Grosjean, in the Haas, spun off as he avoided the Mercedes.
The circuit’s revised kerbs caused problems for Red Bull’s Dutch teenager Max Verstappen, who called them “unbelievable” and “dangerous” after riding over them and ending up in the gravel with a smashed suspension.
The new kerbs have been introduced to force drivers to respect track limits. – Reuters