3 Things to Know: June 30

1

...for even a match pitting the world No. 772 against the world No. 3 to become compelling. That it was, despite Roger Federer running through the first seven games without incident. But the Centre Court crowd—as loud as they’ve been in previous Wimbledon finals—got their collective wish as tennis’ ultimate underdog got on the board, and then kept it interesting through the duration of Federer’s inexorable 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 win. Willis remained as engaging as he was in the press room after his unlikely first-round victory, and will probably be the only second-round loser to feel like he won it all.

2

Remember the rain delays that plagued Roland Garros? Of course you do, because they’re at it again at the very next major. The prior two days have essentially been washouts, with only covered Centre Court seeing uninterrupted action. That’s allowed Federer and Novak Djokovic, strangers to the SW19 hinterlands, to reach the third round, while it’s also kept 28 players stuck in the first round. It will be yet another busy day at the All England Club—if weather permits.

3

What tennis was played on Wednesday moved along quickly, so two additional matches were scheduled on Centre Court: Belinda Bencic vs. Tsvetana Pironkova, and Eugenie Bouchard vs. Magdalena Rybarikova. Both “B” team members have had their struggles of late, but earned a pair of confidence-building wins under unusual circumstances. And they’ll both be back at it today—Bencic against American qualifier Julia Boserup, Bouchard against Britain’s Johanna Konta.