Tennis: Andre Agassi will meet Rafael Nadal in the third round after the Spaniard staged a magnificient comeback to beat little known American Robert Kendrick in five sets at Wimbledon this afternoon.
Agassi, who is making his farewell appearance at the grasscourt grand slam, made his experience count at critical moments to beat 22-year-old Italian Andreas Seppi 6-4 7-6 6-4 and set up a third-round showdown with the double French Open champion.
Nadal was anything but convincing in his encounter on Centre Court, but somewhow managed to dig out a victory despite dropping the first two sets to the 26-year-old Californian.
Kendrick, ranked 237, produced perfect serve-volley tennis to take the first two sets before the Nadal launched a stirring comeback to win 6-7 3-6 7-6 7-5 6-4.
The claycourt specialist stole a third-set tie-break and, after Kendrick finally cracked at the end of the fourth set, dominated the decider.
Aged 22, Seppi had youth on his side and ran the slow-starting Agassi ragged in the opening set but the American eventually stirred into action and delighted the crowd by securing victory in two hours and 23 minutes.
Losing the second set on a tie-break seemed to knock the stuffing out of Seppi, who had beaten British wild card Jamie Baker in four sets in the first round.
He surrendered his serve in the third game and looked down and out when Agassi created two more break points in the seventh.
To his credit Seppi, whose win over Baker was only his second ever in a grand slam, refused to give in and held serve to force Agassi to serve out for the match - which proved to be a formality for Agassi.
Andy Roddick powered into the third round with a 6-4 6-1 6-2 thrashing of German Florian Mayer.
The American third seed, runner-up the last two years, had struggled through his first round match but looked in much better form against Mayer.
Roddick needed little over an hour on court two to dispatch the world number 63, appropriately sealing victory with an ace.
He will face either Andy Murray or France's Julien Benneteau in the last 32. Murray led 7-6 6-4 4-6 when their second round match on Centre Court was halted due to fading light.
The defending women's champion Venus Williams was made work hard for her place in the Wimbledon third round today by Lisa Raymond.
First blood in the all-American match went to Raymond on a tie-break and but Williams battled to take the second 7-5.
The decider was a little more clear cut however, as Williams's superior athleticism and experience came to the fore, to finish the match of with a 6-2 third-set win.
The 2004 women's champion Maria Sharapova has swept into the third round at Wimbledon with an authoritative 6-2 6-2 victory over American Ashley Harkleroad.
The number four seed, who has dropped just six games so far in her effortless progress through the early part of the draw, overpowered Harkleroad with her pinpoint accuracy and power-packed forehands.
In the first set, Sharapova's controlled aggression paid rich dividends. The elegant Russian teenager lost only three points on her own serve and she easily broke the American's serve twice.
Sharapova let slip two match points before securing a comfortable victory and will next meet either American Amy Frazier or Hungary's Melinda Czink.
Her Russian compatriot Anastasia Myskina was equally impressive in her straight sets win over German Martina Muller, but Slovakian Daniela Hanthucova needed three sets to beat American Jamea Jackson 6-3 4-6 7-5.
Myskina, the number nine seed, cruised to a 6-2 6-1 win.