Novak ‘solid’... now for tricky customer Tomic

NOVAK DJOKOVIC gave himself seven or eight marks out of 10 after outclassing Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen 64 6-2 6-3 on a scorching Centre Court to move safely into the Wimbledon third round yesterday.

The world number one and top seed dropped serve in the opening game and was largely subdued in a performance littered with uncharacteristic errors.

Serb Djokovic was still far too good for 33year-old world number 92 Nieminen, who was playing in his final Wimbledon, and the defending champion was satisfied with his day’s work.

“I would rate probably around seven or eight. I think it was a very solid performance,” Djokovic told reporters. “I’ve done just enough to win in straight sets.”

Nieminen came out with all guns blazing and reeled off a succession of rasping groundstrokes to win the first two games.

“He started off very well, very aggressive, BERNARD TOMIC questioned Wimbledon’s heat rule which allows women players some respite but not men as on-court temperatures edged over 41 degrees Celsius yesterday.

The Australian 27th seed beat Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 7-6(3) 6-4 7- 6( 5) to reach the third round but needed treatment after toiling under the blazing sun.

“I was very dizzy out there. I didn’t sleep well yesterday and the day before. I was fatigued and starting to get dizzy out there winners in the first couple games,” Djokovic said. “I managed to stay calm and believe I can come back. That’s what I’ve done.”

Djokovic broke back for 3-3 and took Nieminen’s serve again to seal the opening set. “I think the crucial turning point was the 10th game of the first set when I won the set and I started playing more freely,” he said.

“I thought I had the match under control and everything was fine.”

Djokovic will play Australian Bernard Tomic, the 27th seed, in the last 32 and is expecting his opponent to get raucous support from hordes of green and gold-clad fans.

“It’s nice to see in the tennis that there are a group of guys coming to support their player,” he said.

“Tennis maybe misses that a little bit more, more of I’d say a Davis Cup atmosphere. But you get used to it once you play in front of them, which I’ve done in Australia quite a few times.”

Djokovic was taken to four sets by Tomic in the 2011 Wimbledon quarter-finals. with the heat hitting me,” he told reporters.

“It was tough, so I had to slow things down. I had to catch my breath. It was not that easy, that situation for me in the second. I was feeling bad.”

Tomic, who faces defending champion Novak Djokovic next, was asked whether Wimbledon’s complicated heat rule which, in certain extreme circumstances, can allow women a break should a match go to a third set should also be applied to men’s matches.

“I was actually talking about that in the

“He (Tomic) can play short slice, come to the net, Djokovic said. “He has a very quick motion for the serve. It’s very difficult to read it on grass. I’m not expecting anything easy there”

Meanwhile Milos Raonic almost matched the Wimbledon serving speed record against German veteran Tommy Haas as the Canadian powerhouse moved into the third round.

Seventh seed Raonic, a semi-finalist last year on the west London lawns, boomed down one delivery at 145mph, just short of the 148mph missile American Taylor Dent produced five years ago.

Despite his ferocious game he was still dragged into a fourth set by the injuryplagued 37-year-old former world number two who on Monday became the oldest man to win a Wimbledon singles match since Jimmy Connors in 1991.

Haas was completely overpowered for two sets but hit back before Raonic, who creamed down 28 aces, prevailed 6-0 6-2 6-7(5) 7-6(4) on an oven-like Court One.

The popular German saved three consec- locker room. It’s a bit interesting how the women have a different rule applied to them with the heat,” he said.

“I think ours is slightly different. I think we are allowed to play in more heat. Is it fair or not? Who am I to say? I don’t know. It’s a tough one.”

The heat rule was introduced in 1992 and is in use at all WTA events throughout the year. It has only been used twice at Wimbledon, in 2006 and 2009.

It allows a 10-minute break to be taken between the second and third set when the utive match points at 5-6 in the fourth set as Raonic wobbled but another ace brought up three more in the tiebreak and this time Haas could not escape, Raonic sealing the win with a backhand pass.

More heavy firepower will definitely be on display when Raonic faces Australian trailblazer Nick Kyrgios in round three – the player he subdued in last year’s quarter-final.

Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori pulled out of Wimbledon before his second round match against Colombian Santiago Giraldo yesterday after failing to recover from a calf strain.

Fourth seed Maria Sharapova survived the embarrassment of firing down three successive double faults to surrender her serve at 4-2 up in the first set. She turned on the heat to win the eight of the next nine games and subdue Dutchwoman Richel Hogenkamp 6-3 6-1.

An upset in the women’s draw was American CoCo Vandeweghe ousting 11th seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic 76(5) 6-4. – Reuters heat stress index is at or above 30.1 degrees Celsius.

The heat stress index factors together air temperature, humidity and surface temperature.

While some players struggled, the majority seemed untroubled.

American John Isner, who also reached the third round, said: “I’m glad I played on this day, I like playing in the heat. “It wasn’t too humid out there.” “I do train in Florida, and it’s way worse in Florida than it was here today.” – Reuters