Novak Djokovic looked a man on a mission when he took just 15 minutes to blast to a 5-0 lead over Kevin Anderson at Wimbledon on Thursday and was somewhat frustrated when his opponent eventually made him work for almost two hours for his victory.
The number two seed eventually reached round three by triumphing 6-3 6-4 6-2, his second straight-sets win of the week, after another display of clinical efficiency on a breezy Court One.
Such is his heightened level of expectation in the wake of his recently-ended 43-match winning streak that Djokovic still did not look entirely happy, berating himself after a couple of late miscues.
“I may be hard on myself but I think every player is looking for perfection all the time and I’m really satisfied with my performances in the first two rounds,” the Serb told reporters.
“Mentally I do have a different approach to Wimbledon than I had years before. It’s obvious because of the winning streak that my confidence is very high and it makes it easier to step on the court because you believe in yourself and you know that you can win against anybody.”
Having started the match 17 minutes late, much to the frustration of the fans well aware of the forecast rain, Djokovic broke to love in the second game.
Striking the ball cleanly he looked in a different class to his 36th-ranked opponent but was briefly derailed when Anderson won the sixth game and received a sympathetic cheer from the fans.
As a South African who developed his game in the American Collegiate system, Anderson bridled at the idea of being branded a plucky loser and suddenly found his form.
His 6ft 7 ins (2,03m) frame enabled him to get steep bounce in his returns and he fought back to 5-3 before Djokovic restored order to take the opening set.
After punching a double-fisted backhand to settle the game, Djokovic turned to pump his fists at his support team.
The four burly men — fitness, conditioning and nutrition experts and a coach — were all dressed in matching white outfits and sunglasses and rose as one throughout the set to acclaim their man’s key shots.
Anderson stayed in the second set to 3-3, when Djokovic found another gear to break to love again and the Serb was untroubled from then on.
“Efficiency is the right word in these conditions,” he said.
“Precision rather than speed in this wind. At the important moments I served well and returned well.”
Djokovic’s remarkable winning streak came to an end at the hands of Roger Federer in the French Open semi-finals and if the seedings go to plan they will meet at the same stage in this tournament.
He has more work to do before that though, starting with a third-round meeting with either Marcos Baghdatis or Andreas Seppi.
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