The weather was slightly kinder on Day 3 of Wimbledon, with play possible for the majority of the day. Daniil Medvedev reached the second round in straight sets. But who else looked good and bad, what was the biggest upset, and which match provided the most drama for the fans at SW19?
Wimbledon Day 3 Recap?
Who looked good
Defending champion Novak Djokovic played a high quality match with Jordan Thompson, who also looked very good on Centre Court. The Serb was a 6-3 7-6 7-5 winner. The Australian served superbly, reducing the greatest returner of all time to just two breaks of serve and five break points over the three sets. But Djokovic stayed cool and kept his level high throughout the majority of the match, hitting over twice as many winners compared to unforced errors, and not conceding a break point during the entirety of the match.
Jannik Sinner continued his strong start to the Championships, coming through a tight opening set opening set with Diego Schwartzman before easily winning the next two sets 6-1 6-2. The gritty Argentine wasn’t quite at his best, spraying more unforced errors in the final two sets than usual. But Sinner still played a very good match, leaving the fans on Centre Court shocked at times with the blistering power from his forehand. He also has the bonus along with Djokovic of already being in the third round while so many players remain behind schedule.
Recent Queen’s semifinalist Holger Rune was finally able to complete his first round match with British wildcard George Loffhagen, coming through 7-6 6-2 6-3. Rune looked stronger today after the first set was played yesterday. Rune served very well and looked encouragingly strong at the net, winning 26 of the 30 points he played in the forecourt. It will be interesting to see if he continues to come to the net regularly in his upcoming matches.
Tenth seed Francis Tiafoe was solid in his 7-6 6-3 6-4 first round win over the talented Yibing Wu. The American wasn’t at his very best on serve, being broken four times. But his groundstrokes were excellent throughout the match, and he also showed some neat skills at the net, winning 23 of 33 points there. If he finds his serving range, he will be a handful for anyone.
Who looked bad
Sebastian Korda suffered the biggest upset of Day 3, falling to Jiri vesely 7-6 4-6 6-2 6-3. Vesely does deserve enormous credit for his performance, firing 59 winners in a display that was inspired for long periods of the match. Korda had said before the tournament that he felt he was one of the favourites for Wimbledon, but he failed to back up his words. He wasn’t terrible through the entirety of the match, but Vesely played the important points much the better. Korda took one break point opportunity out of 11, while his Czech opponent took three out of four chances. It is impossible for Korda to be a favorite if he fails to deliver in the biggest moments in a match.
13th seed Borna Coric was also usurped. He was a 6-3 7-5 4-6 3-6 6-1 loser to Guido Pella. Pella was a shock quarterfinalist in 2019, hence he has grass court pedigree. But the 2018 Halle champion did not play at a level befitting of his seeding. Like Korda, he was guilty of wasting opportunities, failing to convert 14 of his 17 break point openings.
2019 Wimbledon semifinalist and 20th seed Roberto Bautista was the other seed to be knocked out on Day 3. Roman Safiullin won an epic match 2-6 7-6 6-7 6-4 7-5. The Spaniard reached the Halle semifinals just two weeks ago but never looked fully comfortable, eventually falling to a surprise defeat.
Match of the Day
The choice for the best match was obvious. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Dominic Thiem had an incredible battle on Court 2. The Greek overcame Thiem by the thinnest of margins, coming out a 3-6 7-6 6-2 6-7 7-6 winner. Aside from the third set when Thiem made many unforced errors, the level was high throughout the match. It was great to see Thiem playing so well again, albeit in a losing cause, and he has encouragement to take for the rest of the season. But Tsitsipas deserves enormous admiration for serving well in many big moments and keeping his composure. Unfortunately he now faces Andy Murray tomorrow after such a dramatic encounter.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
