Federer in easy win

Defending champion Roger Federer made up for lost time with a straight-sets victory over Sweden’s Thomas Johansson on “People’s Sunday” at Wimbledon.

The world number one had waited 24 hours to get his match under way but he took just one hour 38 minutes to wrap up a 6-3 6-4 6-3 third-round victory over an outclassed opponent.

Federer began cautiously but gradually moved ominously through the gears to put out the 2002 Australian Open champion and earn a standing ovation from the 11,000 fans in carnival mood on Centre Court.

His routine victory made it 20 consecutive wins on grass and he has lost just 19 games in his three straight-sets successes so far in the championship.

Johansson, unseeded after missing virtually the whole of last year with a knee injury, did very little wrong but he simply did not have the arsenal to break down the defences of the champion, who has won all six matches against the Swede.

Even when Johansson forced break points for the only time in the sixth game of the final set, Federer upped a gear, taking his tally of aces to 11 to quickly snuff out the threat.

Federer, virtually impregnable on his serve, produced just 12 unforced errors and included 44 winners, the majority of them with his trademark crashing forehand.

He achieved the first of four breaks in the sixth game when Johansson fought back 0-40 down to deuce but was deceived by and extraordinary half-volley off the champion’s toes to lose his serve.

The big-serving Swiss man consolidated the break with a love service game and won the set 6-3 with his fourth ace.

Johansson managed to save two break points in his first service game of the second set but had no answer Federer’s powerful forehand winner that put him a break up at 4-3.

Federer then comfortably held his own serve to take the second set 6-4 with the aid of his seventh ace.

The champion tumbled over on the slippery surface behind the baseline in the third game of the third set but he came up smiling to quickly wrap up the victory, which sets up a fourth-round meeting with Feliciano Lopez or Ivo Karlovic.