Roger Federer has cruised into the last 16 at Wimbledon with a straight-sets win over Santiago Giraldo under the Centre Court roof.
The seven-time champion triumphed 6-3 6-1 6-3 over the Colombian world No.35 in an hour and 21 minutes and rarely looked troubled.
In the fourth round, Federer faces either the big-serving Polish 15th seed Jerzy Janowicz, a semi-finalist last year, or Tommy Robredo of Spain, seeded 23rd, for a place in the quarter-finals.
“It’s really about maintaining a good level of play,” said Federer, who is yet to lose a set in the tournament and has only dropped 23 games in three matches.
“I’ve just got to keep playing aggressive and serving well. I think that’s what you’ve got to do on this service. If I can keep the points short, great, otherwise, battle it out from the baseline.”
Giraldo, 26, is in the form of his life, having hit a career-high ranking of 34 in May and it would have taken the biggest win of his career to become the first Colombian to reach the last 16 at Wimbledon.
But it was only at 3-3 in the third set when he fashioned two break points, and Federer pulled off some smart serves to win the game and did not look back.
Federer’s victory brought England football icon David Beckham to his feet, one of several British and international sports stars invited into the Royal Box.
“I’m worried about the first week, getting to the second one, then the grass plays quite differently, actually, the second week so you can do a few different things depending on the weather,” Federer said.
“Don’t even know who my next round opponent is. I’m just happy I made it to the second week.”