Federer through, Djokovic departs

ROGER FEDERER motors remorselessly on as the road to history and that sixth consecutive Wimbledon title gets less congested by the day.

Not only was he close to his dominant best as he dispatched Sweden’s Robin Soderling 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7/3) to take his place in the third round, but he also saw one of tennis’s major traffic cones removed from his route.

An hour or so before Federer walked on to Centre Court, Novak Djokovic – the man who had been potentially the most troublesome of semi-final opponents on his side of the draw – was sent packing by Marat Safin.

The normally volatile Safin showed impressive mental strength, powering to a 6-4 7-6 (7/3) 6-2 victory that will not have gone unnoticed by Federer who looked in such composed demeanour in his own contest.

If the form he displayed against Soderling is anything to go by then the reports of Federer’s vulnerability, which have been doing the rounds this year, might well prove to be rashly premature.

True, he lost his serve on grass for the first time this year in the third set against an opponent who was serving at 140mph, but the way in which he recovered to destroy Soderling in a dominant tie-break was the hallmark of a champion.

Federer’s verdict summed it up well enough. “It was an excellent performance,” said the man who is bidding to become the first man since William Renshaw in the 19th Century to win the men’s singles six times in-a-row.

“It was a tough match. He has a good game for grass. I was happy to get the match out of the way. I had to scramble a lot.

“I was quite relieved to get back and win the breaker. I really had to dig deep and concentrate on my own serve. I was relieved to get back and win the breaker. It was a big moment.”

Federer revealed he had watched Safin beat Djokovic but insisted: “Novak’s loss doesn’t make my day any better. I’m through to the third round, that’s what I’m focusing on. It’s a big upset but I’m concentrating on my section.”

Federer will now play Marc Gicquel in round three after the Frenchman came from two sets down to end the run of Ilija Bozoljac 4-6 5-7 7-6 (7/1) 7-6 (7/0) 6-3 after a marathon struggle.

Meanwhile, former champion Lleyton Hewitt remained on course for a fourth-round clash with Federer after brushing aside Spain’s Albert Montanes 7-6 (7/4) 6-0 6-2.

Elsewhere, there were also comfortable victories for 13th seed Stanislas Wawrinka over Juan Martin Del Potro and 31st seed Feliciano Lopez over Roko Karanusic.

Canada’s Frank Dancevic, who knocked out seventh seed David Nalbandian in the first round, was unable to maintain that form and lost to American Bobby Reynolds.

Number 10 seed Marcos Baghdatis – a beaten quarter-finalist last year – is also into the last 32 after a 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory over former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson.

Shortly after 9pm, fifth seed David Ferrer booked his place in the third round with victory over Igor Andreev, the Spanish star coming back from a set down to win 3-6 6-3 6-4 6-2.

Ferrer will play Mario Ancic in the last 32 after the Croatian almost let slip a two-set lead before beating Philipp Petzschner of Germany 6-1 6-4 6-7 (1/7) 4-6 6-3 on court 14.