Iga Swiatek made it to the round-of-64 of Wimbledon on Monday without much ado. The world no. 1 defeated Lin Zhu 6-1, 6-3 in an hour and 20 minutes.
Swiatek cruised through the opening set and had a couple of set points on Zhu’s serve in the sixth game of the set. However, Zhu saved them both and put herself on the scoreboard for the first time in the match. The Chinese player wasn’t able to prolong the end result of the set any farther than that as Swiatek served it out in the seventh game.
The second set saw Swiatek break early and take the lead only for Zhu to make a comeback and break back. Zhu’s comeback attempt didn’t last long and Swiatek broke for the second time in the set not long after. There was a brief delay in the proceedings as rain forced the closing of the roof. When play resumed, Swiatek didn’t take long to wrap up the win for herself.
Swiatek hit 22 winners for the match while her opponent had just seven. Zhu was unable to match up to the top seed’s pace and struggled to time her shots as well. As Swiatek kept piling on the pressure on her, Zhu’s game deserted her further. Zhu did slightly better at the start of the second set but even then, the momentum slipped away from her grasp. Swiatek finished the match with 62 winners to Zhu’s 40.
Wimbledon: It’s all in a day’s work for Iga Swiatek
Swiatek will play either Martina Trevisan or Sara Sorribes Tormo next. The Pole who’d withdrawn from her semi-final on Friday against Lucia Bronzetti at the Bad Homburg Open due to food poisoning didn’t show any signs of lingering weakness and ill-health.
Earlier, fourth seed Jessica Pegula also entered the round-of-64 at Wimbledon. The American had quite a match on her hands against fellow countrywoman Lauren Davis. Davis saved triple set points in the second set to push the match into the third set. Pegula eventually came from down a break in the decider to clinch a 6-2, 6-7(8), 6-3 win for herself.
Photo Credit: Wimbledon Twitter
