Wimbledon 2013: Talking points from Day 2

Robson’s big match aptitude

Once again, when facing a big name, Laura Robson produced her best tennis adding Maria Kirilenko to an impressive list of big names unable to deal with her supreme ball striking. Aggy Radwanska, Venus Williams, Li Na, Kim Clijsters and Petra Kvitova have now all been beaten by Robson over the past 12 months. The difference this time was that Robson’s key problems – the double fault and unforced errors – dried up considerably. Was this because of Miles McLagan, her new interim coach? We can’t know for sure; but if she continues to cut down on those freebies, she is a match for everyone in the women’s game.

Of course, this brilliant performance has seen the British media and public fall into their classic trap of hyping her up to ludicrous levels. Virginia Wade in commentary even said that Serena Williams is waiting for her in the quarter finals. That’s ridiculous. She still needs to win three tough matches before that can be even discussed. What’s more interesting in the short-term is whether Robson will be able to put in this performance when she faces a supposed lesser opponent. This has been an area where she has struggled over the past six months. So against Mariana Duque, who is ranked 79 places below her, will the expectation of the British crowd hold her back, and will we see her return to spraying balls all over the courts once again?

Bernard Tomic in a nutshell

I watched Tomic’s match against Sam Querrey from start to finish, and even a day later I still have no idea how he managed to win! The controversial Australian somehow managed to save nine break points in the first two sets and then steal both of them on tie breaks. During the third and fourth sets, it was clear that Tomic had hit the wall and was forced to call a doctor out to the court for treatment due to exhaustion. Most people were sure the tournament was over for him. However, to everyone’s surprise, in the fifth, Tomic began to see the ball like a moon and hit Querrey off the court with some sublime passing shots and winners down the line. He took the set and the match.

Querrey hit 36 aces and 79 winners, but still lost and this is why Tomic is so frustrating to play against. His highly unorthodox style means that players have to hit shots that they are just so unaccustomed to hitting in a normal match. But why doesn’t the Australian play the way he did in the fifth more often? It’s so infuriating watching him play because this kid could be a top 20 player right now if he could successfully combine both of these styles throughout the year. He faces another American, James Blake, in the next round, so expect more perplexing points and endless drama.

Tomas Berdych has a chance

Of all the men that played yesterday, the person I was most impressed with was Tomas Berdych. So often the nearly man, Berdych had a nightmare grass court campaign last year. He lost twice in the first round at Wimbledon and the Olympics to Ernest Gulbis and Steve Darcis (remember him?). The big man tends to struggle with his footing, especially on the first couple of days when the show court grass is particularly slippery. Yesterday though, he dispatched the dangerous Martin Klizan with relative ease.

Klizan is a big-hitting left-hander who took a set off Rafael Nadal at the French Open in May and has the potential to be a top 20 player in the next two years. Berdych, though, played brilliantly to out-hit and out-serve the Slovakian, winning 92% of points on his first serve. Berdych’s pedigree on grass is beyond question. He reached the final in 2010 beating both Federer and Djokovic with ease en route. When he lost in the first round last year, he went onto reach the semi finals of the US Open beating Federer once again. He lost in the first round in the French Open in May, so could history repeat itself? A certain Novak Djokovic should await him in the quarter finals if that is true.