Novak Djokovic brushed past France's Adrian Mannarino 6-4 6-3 7-6(5) on Wednesday to book his place in the third round of Wimbledon. The defending champion, aiming for his third consecutive title, played well within himself and was rarely troubled during the second-round match. Mannarino, ranked 55, put up spirited resistance in the third set to force a tiebreak but was ultimately swept off Centre Court by the Serbian's laser-guided ground-strokes.
Coach Boris Becker can help Novak Djokovic acquire a greater mental toughness to better his recent record in Grand Slam finals, the Serb said ahead of the Dubai Championships which begin on Monday.
With British hopes of elusive home success once again resting on his shoulders, Andy Murray could have been forgiven an envious glance Novak Djokovic's way after the Wimbledon draw was made on Friday.
The winners of the season's first three grand slams Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Rafa Nadal put on a masterclass at the Western and Southern Open on Wednesday, strolling into the third round with straight sets wins.
Novak Djokovic spurred Serbia to a 3-0 win over neighbours Croatia in the first round of the Davis Cup on Saturday and they will be joined in the quarter-finals by an equally rampant France.
Top seed Stanislas Wawrinka scored a clinical 6-3, 6-1 win over Benjamin Becker to progress to the quarter-finals of the ATP Chennai Open even as second seed Michael Youzhny conceded his singles match in yet another the player pull out in Chennai.
Two-time champion Victoria Azarenka won a battle of former girls' champions at the Australian Open by easing past Czech Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to advance to the fourth round at Melbourne Park.
Tatsuma Ito and Michal Przysiezny claimed the biggest wins of their careers at the Japan Open on Tuesday when the local wildcard knocked out top seed Stan Wawrinka and the Polish qualifier saved match points to beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Rafa Nadal got his usual confidence boost from Nicolas Almagro at Roland Garros, reaching the third round with a 6-4, 6-3, 6-1 victory -- his fourth without dropping a set against his Spanish compatriot on the Paris clay.
The Argentine, making his first appearance at Wimbledon since reaching the semi-finals in 2013, held aloft his arms in triumph after condemning twice Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka to his earliest defeat at the All England Club for three years.
World No 1 Novak Djokovic maintained his perfect tournament record and advanced to his fifth China Open final with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Andy Murray on Saturday.
Alize Cornet fought tooth and nail but the local favourite's French Open run came to an end when she was knocked out 6-2, 7-6(9) in the fourth round by Ukrainian 19th seed Elina Svitolina on Sunday.
Soccer's governing body FIFA has agreed to ban the third-party ownership (TPO) of players, its president Sepp Blatter said on Friday, seven years after first promising to outlaw the practice.
Croatian wunderkind Borna Coric offered emphatic proof of his potential when he crushed Rafael Nadal in the Swiss Indoor tournament on Friday before local hero Roger Federer cruised into the last four.
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