Emma Raducanu laid down a marker for her Wimbledon rivals after thrashing Elise Mertens 6-1 6-2 to reach the third round.
The 2021 US Open champion has been close to her best since the start of the grasscourt season and had strong runs in Nottingham and Eastbourne heading into Wimbledon.
A first-ever win against a top-10 opponent last week in Jessica Pegula filled Raducanu with plenty of confidence.
But her first-round match was far from convincing, despite playing against someone making their main draw debut at Wimbledon.
Renata Zarazua caused Raducanu all sorts of problems, but Raducanu showed her resilience in still getting past a tricky opponent in straight sets despite not playing well.
But a completely different and re-energized Raducanu was on display on Court One for her second-round match against Mertens.
The doubles specialist could have proven to be a tricky opponent for the former British No 1.
However, it proved to be one-sided from the very first game with Raducanu threatening to bagel her opponent.
Mertens managed to get one game on the board, but that merely delayed the inevitable as a determined Raducanu wrapped the first set up in just 37 minutes.
The crowd inside Court One made it clear what they made of Raducanu’s performance in the first set as they were up on their feet applauding the British star.
And those cheers grew even louder in the second set as Raducanu continued to dominate her experienced opponent.
It didn’t take long for Raducanu to secure the double break before serving out for the match in just one hour and 15 minutes.
Emma Raducanu could face Maria Sakkari in the next round
REUTERS
Clearly buzzing from the atmosphere and her victory, Raducanu bounced up to the net to shake hands with Mertens before taking in the applause from the Court One crowd.
Raducanu now faces either No 9 seed Maria Sakkari or Arantxa Rus in the next round.
The British star has already seen her section of the draw open up significantly this week.
Emma Raducanu looked close to her best
REUTERS
Sakkari, Anastasia, Daria Kasatkina and Dayana Yastremska are the only seeded players Raducanu could face up to the semi-finals.
Raducanu could then meet American Coco Gauff in the last four, who has similarly sailed through her first two matches at Wimbledon with ease.
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