Roger Federer, after a smooth start to his bid for a record equaling 7th Wimbledon title, next faces World no.55, Adrian Mannarino of France in his second rounter encounter at the 2011 Championships.
BREAKDOWN:
Sixteen times Grand Slam champion, Roger Federer began his quest for a 17th Slam and a 7th Wimbledon trophy with a straight forward straight sets 7-6(7-2), 6-4, 6-2 victory over Mikhail Kukuskhin of Kazaksthan. Despite all the experience and success he has accrued over the years, he admitted to have felt nervous ahead of his first round match. Contrarily, last year, Alejandro Falla pushed the champion to five sets and was on the verge of taking out the defending champion in the first round. This year, the Swiss Maestro mastered the tough conditions well enough and with his form and serve, he has bolstered his chances of clinching the title for a 7th time.
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Mannarino was involved in one of the most dramatic first round clashes with Ireland’s Conor Niland. The Frenchman finally saw off his opponent in five grueling sets 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7), 4-6, 6-4 lasting for four hours, rallying from 1-4 (two breaks) down in the fifth set to set up a dream second round clash with the six times champion, Roger Federer. This is the best performance for the Frenchman at the Championships. The left-hander has enjoyed a fine grass-court season, defeating Ernests Gulbis, Gilles Simon and Juan Martin Del Potro en route to the Queens quarter-finals.
HEAD TO HEAD RECORD:
This will be the first encounter between the Swiss ace and the 55th ranked Frenchman.
MATCH POINT:
Roger Federer is expected to breeze through to the third round given the Tuesday exertions the Frenchman would be recovering from, though one can expect a fight from him given the manner in which he fought back in the fifth set in his last match.
