Roger Federer saw off fading force Lleyton
Hewitt 7-6 (9-7), 6-2, 6-4 to start week two at the Wimbledon Championships on
Monday, running head-long into a next-round nightmare challenge on grass.
The world number one spared only a brief thought for the 27-year-old
Hewitt, who will need to get a long-running hip injury sorted now that his
Wimbledon is over.
"I feel bad that he's injured - for a split second," said the 12-time
Grand Slam champion Swiss. "But he was still dangerous, he still had
break-points in the third.
"You never know. All of a sudden maybe he won't feel that hip maybe that
much any more if the adrenaline starts to come along."
The Swiss, the last man besides Hewitt to earn a trophy triumph at the All
England club will on Wednesday face the last man to beat him on grass.
Gusty Croatian Mario Ancic outlasted Spanish surprise Fernando Verdasco 3-6,
4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 13-11, taking nearly four hours.
Second seed Rafael Nadal kept pace with his rival Federer, as he defeated
Russian Mikhail Youzhny 6-3, 6-3, 6-1.
Ancic stunned Federer in long-ago 2002 first round, with the Swiss winning
their next five encounters, including at Roland Garros last month and at
Wimbledon in 2006.
"I just played him in Paris and beat him quite easily," said the top
seed, who is now just three wins away from levelling Bjorn Borg on 41 straight
Wimbledon victories.
The fourth-round victory over Hewitt also added some insurance for Federer's
number one ranking, though Nadal could possibly take over the top spot with a
title.
Federer saved all eight break points he faced, improving to 14-7 over Hewitt,
who last beat the Swiss in 2003.
"I'm just happy the way I'm playing, no real problems so far," said
the winner. "I've been serving well, playing well, beating dangerous
opponents, such as (Robin) Soderling and now Lleyton.
The women's side continued to haemmorrage seeds with number two Jelena Jankovic
slamming officials after her 6-3, 6-2 fourth-round loss to Thai veteran Tamarine
Tanasugarn.
The Serb, who was denied a later start in the day after hoping to rehab a knee
problem, also lashed out after being exiled to a minor showcourt.
"I was almost playing in the parking lot, I almost need a helicopter to go
to my court," complained the highest-ranking woman who had been left in
the decimated field.
Her exit means that the event has lost the three top seeds on the women's side
- number three Maria Sharapova in the second round and top seed Ana Ivanovic in
the third.
Elena Dementieva, seeded fifth, beat Israeli Shahar Peer 6-2, 6-1
Two Russian seeds exited as the wave of young talent from eastern Europe
continued to make breakthroughs.
Agnieszka Radwanska, Poland's 14th seed who won a tune-up event, upset number
four Svetlana Kuznetsova 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 while Czech Nicole Vaidisova out out
number eight Anna Chakvetadze 4-6, 7-6 (7-0), 6-3.
Venus and Serena Williams both managed victories on low-key court 2, Serena
beating American Bethanie Mattek 6-3, 6-3 and holder Venus stopping Alisa
Kleybanova 6-3, 6-4.
Serena, Like Jankovic, complained of her venue. "It
definitely does give me extra motivation to win and to play well, dpa reported.
"Initially I thought, is this the right schedule? I thought maybe
there was a mistake. But I can't dwell on that. I have to really focus on
winning."
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