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By Chris Oddo | Wednesday July 5, 2017



1. Do You Know Brown

Andy Murray and Dustin Brown have not met since 2010, and they’ve never met on grass, yet today’s second match on Centre Court is one of the more highly anticipated matches of Day 3 because of the way that Brown trounced Rafael Nadal on Centre Court at Wimbledon in 2015. Brown’s 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 win over Nadal marks the German’s only Top 10 win at a major. Can he possibly shock Murray? Unlikely, but the match promises to be entertaining nevertheless, because of the reckless abandon with which Brown plays on grass, and Murray’s elevated counterpunching acumen.

2. Konta Hopes to Crack Modest Milestone

Reaching the third round at Wimbledon doesn’t seem like a big deal for a World No.7, but make no mistake about it: If Johanna Konta can get by Donna Vekic on Centre Court today it will be massive for her. Konta owns a 2-5 lifetime record at Wimbledon and has never been beyond round two. Vekic defeated Konta in three sets the Nottingham final, so revenge is in order.

3. Keep an eye on Cilic

Marin Cilic won all 14 of his service games in a first-round takedown of Philipp Kohlschreiber, and he’ll look to serve his way past another German when he faces Florian Mayer on Day 3. Cilic ranks 5th in unreturned first serve (35 of 56, 63%) and saved all four break points he has faced in round one. It could be a long day for the crafty Mayer.


4. Ostapenko Streaking

French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko won her 8th consecutive match at a major on Day 3 when she cracked 24 winners in a three-set victory over Aliaksandra Sasnovich. Half of those came from her backhand wing. Will the Latvian ratchet up the hot shots in her Day 3 encounter with Francoise Abanda? The Canadian, fresh off her first career Wimbledon win is only 20 and looks to have a bright future. But Ostapenko is also 20, and she proved a month ago that her future is now.


5. Nishikori vs. Stakhovsky

Will Sergiy Stakhovsky’s crash-and-bang net game stack up against Kei Nishikori’s baseline barrage? That’s a question that needs answering on Day 3. 30 percent of Nishikori’s strokes went for winners in his Day 1 thrashing of Italian Marco Cecchinato. If he keeps up the hot hitting he could make the Ukrainian a very lonely man up at net.

6. Vesnina looks to break Azarenka Duck

Victoria Azarenka will look to continue her comeback against a familiar doormat on Day 3, as she’ll look to improve to 8-0 against Russia’s Elena Vesnina on No.3 Court. Azarenka has won all 14 sets vs. Vesnina (12 on hard, two on clay).

7. Nadal’s Return the Difference?

Donald Young better be good at protecting his serve today, because it appears that Rafael Nadal has his return game firing on all cylinders. The Spaniard won 8 of 12 return games in his first-round stoning of Aussie John Millman. Nadal has won 13 straight matches against lefties, and he has won all four sets he has played against Young.

8. 20 Wimbledons for Venus Williams

Venus Williams will look to advance to the third round against China’s Wang Qiang on No.1 Court on Day 3. Williams is 16-1 lifetime in second-round matches at Wimbledon, and 82-14 overall at SW19.

The American is playing in her record 75th Grand Slam.


9. 600 for Tsonga

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will play his 600th ATP win on Day 3 when he meets Italian Simone Bolelli. The Frenchman has been good on grass, going 46-19 lifetime on the surface overall, and 29-9 at Wimbledon. Tsonga, who played his 150th Grand Slam match on Monday in London, is bidding for his 9th appearance in Wimbledon’s third round.

10. Other must-see second-rounders

Here’s a list of other matches we’ll be keeping tabs on:

Jerzy Janowicz vs. Lucas Pouille, third on, No.3 Court (because Janowicz is intriguing right now, and Pouille is a rising star).

Grigor Dimitrov vs. Diego Schwartzman, third on, No.12 Court (to see what form Dimitrov is going to bring to this fortnight).

Camila Giorgi vs Madison Keys, fourth on, No.3 Court (Keys is a Wimbledon constant of late, and Giorgi is a wild child with the potential to shock).

Karen Khachanov vs. Thiago Montiero, second on, No.14 Court (to see if Khachanov can set a third-round clash with Nadal, which would be juicy).

Enjoy the tennis!

 

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