Sinner advances to the third round of Wimbledon after a hard-fought battle

Sinner fights back from set point against Borges

After his opening match against Miomir Kecmanovic, which Sinner won over the full distance of five sets, the defending champion now finds himself one step closer to a successful title defense. In the third round, he will face Jenson Brooksby of the United States, who also made it through the draw to this stage. The tournament has total prize money of £64.2 million.

In parallel to Sinner's appearance, the top-seeded players in singles qualified for the third round on Wednesday without major stumbles. Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus, seeded second, also mastered her task. Against American McCartney Kessler, Sabalenka won 6:1, 7:6(11/9) and likewise advanced to the next round.

Sabalenka turns around second set against Kessler

The match against Kessler extended after a comfortable first set. Sabalenka was already trailing 2:5 in the second set but fought her way back and forced a tiebreak, in which she prevailed 11:9. About her opponent, Sabalenka said: „Sie hat im zweiten Satz ein unglaubliches Level gespielt." She also added: „Sie mich heute wirklich gefordert und ich bin glücklich, dass ich den Test bestanden habe." In the third round, Sabalenka will now face Jelena Ostapenko.

Daniil Medvedev from Russia also reached the third round on Wednesday. Against Spain's Daniel Merida, Medvedev won 3:6, 6:3, 7:5, 6:2 after losing a set. In the decisive fourth set, he broke the Spaniard twice. Medvedev, who won the 2021 US Open, is now one step closer to his second Grand Slam title. „Ich habe anfangs etwas an Rhythmus verloren", the Russian conceded, but added: „Mein Aufschlag hat mich heute nicht im Stich gelassen."

Medvedev completes comeback against Merida

With an eye on the upcoming challenges, the top-seeded players remain in the hunt for the title. Sinner faces the duel with Brooksby, Sabalenka meets Ostapenko, and Medvedev will face an opponent yet to be finalized in the third round, should he continue to navigate the draw. The overall picture of the second day of the tournament underscores that the seedings produced no surprises from listed underdogs on Wednesday.

Overall, the second day of play at Church Road proceeded as planned from the favorites' perspective. Sinner remains true to his status as defending champion and has the chance in his third match to further solidify his grass-court form. The coming rounds will show whether the top-seeded players can live up to expectations or whether surprises will change the picture in the second week of the tournament.