Novak Djokovic sailed smoothly into the third round of Wimbledon after a trouble-free straight-sets win over Denis Kudla.
The reigning champion’s defence of his title was never threatened by the American and he strolled to a 6-3 6-2 6-2 win on Centre Court.
Djokovic, going for a fifth Wimbledon crown, will undoubtedly face sterner tests ahead but maybe not until the semi-finals after the draw has opened up favourably for him.
He faces Hubert Hurkacz in the next round – a Polish player who is enjoying his best ever grand slam run.
The writing was on the wall for Kudla when Djokovic won the opening five games, though a mini fightback did at least delay the Serbian racing to the first set.
Djokovic barely had to get out of second gear and broke Kudla’s serve regularly to set up the easiest of wins in 93 minutes.
At this stage of the tournament, few would bet against Djokovic winning a 16th Grand Slam title next Sunday and the world number one certainly sounds confident.
“Ambitions are high and I’ve been fortunate in my career to do so well in slams,” he said.
“I have to think only about the next challenge and take things one step at a time.”