The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Dominant Federer eases through to the next tound
Roger Federer’s Wimbledon dominance is showing no signs of weakening after he breezed into the third round.
The 36-year-old destroyed Slovakia’s Lukas Lacko 6-4 6-4 6-1 in just 90 minutes on Centre Court.
It means the eight-time champion has racked up 27 consecutive sets here in a run of nine successive wins spread over this year and last.
Since his triumphant return to the All England Club in 2017 - 12 months after he had limped out of the semifinals looking like a broken man - he has barely broken sweat at his stronghold grand slam.
There was never any expectation that this would be anything other than a routine win for Federer, but he put on a dazzling display in front of his faithful supporters.
He showed off a mixture of shots, firing down 48 winners, which included one outrageous drop shot in the first set that left Lacko with his hands on his hips.
The Slovakian is no mug, having been a beaten finalist at Eastbourne last week, but he could not cope with Federer’s mastery as the Swiss racked up his 93rd Wimbledon win.
“I played very well again, I felt good out there, less nerves than in the first round, which is normal,” Federer said.
“I am happy with how I am hitting the ball and concentration on my own service games and I am able to mix it up on return.
“I needed to put him away and I was able to do that and I am very happy.
“It’s important to be happy out there and play so you’re having fun.
“Of course you have to play the percentages but if you do that too much it becomes boring so I like to mix it up as much as possible, and it worked out well today.”