Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova all advance with ease

Federer in form as he advances

Roger Federer bt Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3 7-5 6-1 – Some people thought that Dolgopolov would present Federer with some issues in their second round clash. Those people were wrong. The No. 2 seed couldn’t have looked any better in a thorough beat down of the Ukrainian.

Federer racked up 25 aces in the straight win and had 39 winners to Dolgopolov’s 24. It was anther reminder that as the 34-year-old continues to age, he’s still among the best in the game and a threat to win any tournament. He certainly looks up to the task in Melbourne.

Serena plays super tennis in easy win

Serena Williams bt Su-Wei Hsieh 6-1 6-2 – Williams has showed little rust at the Australian Open so far. The world’s No. 1, who hadn’t played a competitive match in four months coming into the tournament, looked sharp in her second round win and continued to look as good as she did in her dominant 2015 campaign. Williams looked spry and moved well around the court, while pounding Hsieh with forehands to pick up an easy victory. The American has now won 35 of her last 36 matches in Grand Slams.

Sharapova rolls into third round

Maria Sharapova bt Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-2 6-1 – Sharapova is through two rounds of her Australian Open and she’s lost a grand total of seven games. The No. 5 seed was dominant in her first round win, and she was just as good in the second round. Sharapova hit 22 winners to Sasnovich’s six and won six of nine break points. It wasn’t a perfect showing, as Sharapova only made 56 percent of her first serves and was broken twice, but she was still miles better than Sanovich and looks like a good bet to make a deep run in Melbourne.

Nishikori cruises past Krajicek

Kei Nishikori bt Austin Krajicek 6-3 7-6 (5) 6-3 – Nishikori played his second straight strong match as he booked his place in the third round with an easy win at Margaret Court Arena. The No. 7 seed blasted 13 aces to just one double fault, helping him hold all but one service game. Meanwhile, he hit 40 winners to Krajicek’s 14 and showed a willingness to come forward, winning 16 of 21 at the net as he completely out-classed the American.

Kuznetsova upset by Bondarenko

Kateryna Bondarenko bt Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-1 7-5 – The first upset of Day 3 came in the opening match at Hisense Arena, where the 23rd seed Kuznetsova fell to the 92nd ranked player in the world. Bondarenko played excellently, serving well and hitting strong ground strokes to overwhelm the Russian favourite. Bondarenko was aggressive from the start and it paid off to the tune of 28 winners to 17 for Kuznetsova. The win puts Bondarenko in a Grand Slam third round for the first time since advancing this far at Wimbledon in 2011.

Berdych has no problem with Basic

Tomas Berdych bt Mirza Basic 6-4 6-0 6-3 – There may not be a player in the men’s draw playing as well, and playing as much under the radar, as Berdych right now The No. 6 seed is in phenomenal form and continued that in a thrashing of Basic at Hisense Arena. It took under 100 minutes for the Czech to roll into the third round as he hit 15 aces, won 95 percent of his first serve points and had 43 winners to just 20 unforced errors. It was an excellent display from Berdych, who looks primed to make some noise in the tournament.

Vinci picks up routine win

Roberta Vinci bt Irina Falconi 6-2 6-3 – It looks like Vinci is primed for another deep run at a Grand Slam. The Italian, who went all the way to the final at last year’s U.S. Open, put together her second straight thorough victory in Melbourne that has her looking primed for another excellent tournament. She made quick work of Falconi, winning in 65 minutes thanks to a solid outing that saw her put shot after shot in play as Falconi struggled to keep up. Vinci made just 12 unforced errors in the match and won 62 points to Falconi’s 36, perfectly illustrating the dominant play of the No. 13 seed at Hisense Arena.
Bencic continues strong play

Belinda Bencic bt Timea Babos 6-3 6-3 – Bencic has been tapped by many to be women’s tennis’ next star and she’s showing why in Melbourne. The 18-year-old picked up another comfortable win thanks to a steady match that one would expect from the No. 13 seed. She made just 12 unforced errors and showed uncommon patience for a teenager, letting Babos make mistake after mistake to end the match in just 63 minutes to set up a third round clash with Bondarenko.