You didn't even have to watch Rafael Nadal today to know he was playing well—a listen would have done the trick. Inside a roofed Centre Court, a venue known for its unique acoustics even in ideal conditions, Nadal's ground strokes sounded like gun shots. Much like his game on this day, the top seed's grunt was rhythmic. And the crowd in turn applauded politely, for it was a conventional if clinical outcome in favor of the defending champion, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, over Ryan Sweeting.
Things weren't all bad for Sweeting, the Bahamas-born American who recently won Houston and currently resides in the Top 70. In his two previous matches against Nadal this year, Sweeting won a total of eight games. He topped that tally today, and by the end of this second-rounder was swinging with confidence, eliciting applause of his own. Still, Nadal earned much more with his trademark offense and defense; Sweeting, who can crack the ball, had an incredibly hard time hitting past his foe.
It should be said that one of those two prior encounters came in the second round of the Australian Open—so that means not only did Sweeting won just eight games in five sets, he also had the rotten luck of colliding with Nadal in the second round of two majors. Rafa didn't take his overmatched opponent lightly then, and didn't today. At the French Open, Nadal struggled in his first two matches (and look how that turned out); it's been the opposite at the All England Club, a frightening prospect for his future opponents.
You may have heard another sound while this match was wrapping up—the groan of so many fans who wanted to see Milos Raonic take a shot at the world No. 1 in round three. The big-serving Canadian was forced to retire from his second-rounder after a nasty fall, which means Gilles Muller—who beat Nadal at Wimbledon six years ago—is Nadal's next obstacle.
—Ed McGrogan