Serena can console herself with another Wimbledon triumph

● Missing daughter Olympia’s first steps hits American hard but she responds by booking a quarter-final berth in fine style

the sight of her bent double staring at the grass and wondering how she was ever going to get past the immovable object on the other side of the net was becoming a motif of the match. But, facing the Williams serve at 1-3 down she had a chance. And with a rasping forehand she took it. The crowd were roused. Were they about to see a contest after all?

Next game Williams broke Rodina’s serve to love. She smashed one overhead so hard into the turf it bounced right over the TV cameras, almost landing in the Royal Box. She settled back in her chair to prepare for the big finish, a ballboy scurrying across with the rolled-up towel he kept in an icebox for her, and she placed it round her neck. But Williams barely got hot yesterday and certainly not bothered.

Back to Momhood, did she want Olympia to follow in her small stride? “No, I hope she doesn’t play tennis … unless she wants to, then I’m going to help her. But I’m not sure I’d be a great coach. I don’t want her to have pressure from what I did, and being asked: ‘Are you going to be as good as your mom?’ It’ll be interesting to see what she gravitates to. Ice skating could be fun.”

Or soccer? Williams is loving the World Cup and is being swept up in the England euphoria. The prospect of the tournament finishing “just gets me depressed … what is going to happen to my life after that?” Yet another Wimbledon title might prove some consolation.

the action on multi-screen. No need to mingle with the riff-raff, which is a bit of a misnomer at Wimbledon, but the Diary is sure you know what it means. The Diary has an excellent doocot, No 80, alongside an animated and amusing contingent from Italy, and we’ve bonded over our joint exclusion from the World Cup. Every time England score a goal, the man from La Gazzetta dello Sport shouts “Offside!” The Diary has tried to get in before him with this desperate appeal, so far in vain, but promises to be on its game come the Croatia encounter.