Maria Sharapova cruised to a 6-1, 6-4 third round victory over Taiwanese Hsieh Su-Wei on Friday, the world number one setting up a Wimbledon rematch with Sabine Lisicki.
Sharapova breezed past world number 63 Hsieh despite some serious issues with her serve in the windy conditions on Court One.
The French Open champion’s reward for a typically gritty display is a last 16 meeting with German 15th seed Lisicki in a repeat of last year’s Wimbledon semi-final which the Russian won in straight sets.
“It was definitely not an easy win,” Sharapova said. “She is a tricky opponent and it was very tough conditions as well.
“It got a bit windy, but you have to handle whatever is out there. I felt I had to face a lot and be quite patient.
“Playing Lisicki will be a tough one. She obviously did really well here last year.
“She’s a good grass-court player and I look forward to it.”
Hsieh became the first Taiwanese woman to reach the third round at Wimbledon in the Open area after beating Stephanie Foretz Gacon in the previous round.
But the 26-year-old had only gone further in a grand slam once in her career — when she reached the last 16 at the 2008 Australian Open — and her hopes of emulating that feat against Sharapova always looked a long shot.