Wimbledon 2018: Fourth seed Alexander Zverev and fifth seed Juan Martin del Potro advance
| Wimbledon 2018 on the BBC |
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| Venue: All England Club, Wimbledon Dates: 2-15 July |
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Fourth seed Alexander Zverev and fifth seed Juan Martin del Potro both made it safely into the second round of the men’s singles at Wimbledon after straight-sets wins.
Germany’s Zverev defeated Australia’s world number 748 James Duckworth 7-5 6-2 6-0.
Del Potro, who reached the semi-finals in 2013, beat Zverev’s compatriot Peter Gojowczyk 6-3 6-4 6-3.
The Argentine will next face Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez.
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Lopex, 36, celebrated moving past Roger Federer’s record of 65 consecutive Grand Slam appearances by beating Federico Delbonis 6-3 6-4 6-2.
The three-time Wimbledon quarter-finalist has not missed a Slam since making his debut at the 2002 French Open.
“It means a lot to me but as I said before, it’s not about reaching this number of the most consecutive Grand Slams played. It’s about being 15 years or more playing at the top level,” said Lopez.
“The most important thing is to stay healthy and to be able to compete against these monsters, because for me I played in the past against monsters.
“After I passed 30 it was so important for me to stay fresh and healthy, just to challenge these animals, because their level overall is getting higher and higher in the last decade.”
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Zverev has never been past the fourth round on his three previous visits but the 21-year-old has risen up the rankings and is tipped as a future Grand Slam winner.
Duckworth was playing only his fifth event of the year having featured in just one match in the whole of 2017 after undergoing foot surgery.
Zverev will next face either Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego or Taylor Fritz of the United States.
Del Potro, who won the US Open in 2009, had a brief wobble in the second set of his match but his opponent was unable to take advantage.
Also through is 15th seed Nick Kyrgios who sent down 42 aces in his 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 win over Denis Istomin.
One of Kyrgios’s aces, which reached 135mph, hit a ball girl at the far end of the court, forcing her to leave the arena in tears for treatment.
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