The Latest: Venus Williams comes back again at Wimbledon
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Photo: Ben Curtis, AP Image 1 of / 10 Caption Close Image 1 of 10 Venus Williams of the US sits in her chair after losing the first set to Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania during their women's singles match on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. less Venus Williams of the US sits in her chair after losing the first set to Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania during their women's singles match on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, ... more Photo: Ben Curtis, AP Image 2 of 10 Dennis Novak of Austria returns a ball to Lucas Pouille of France during their men's singles match on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Dennis Novak of Austria returns a ball to Lucas Pouille of France during their men's singles match on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Photo: Ben Curtis, AP Image 3 of 10 Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova celebrates winning her women's singles match against Victoria Azarenka, of Belarus, on the third day of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova celebrates winning her women's singles match against Victoria Azarenka, of Belarus, on the third day of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth, AP Image 4 of 10 Milos Raonic of Canada celebrates defeeating John Millman of Australia in their men's singles match on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Milos Raonic of Canada celebrates defeeating John Millman of Australia in their men's singles match on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Photo: Tim Ireland, AP Image 5 of 10 Image 6 of 10 Roger Federer of Switzerland sends a ball into the tribunes after defeating Serbia's Dusan Lajovic, in their Men's Singles first round match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Monday July 2, 2018. Roger Federer of Switzerland sends a ball into the tribunes after defeating Serbia's Dusan Lajovic, in their Men's Singles first round match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Monday July 2, 2018. Photo: Tim Ireland, AP Image 7 of 10 Romania's Mihaela Buzarnescu returns the ball to Britain's Katie Swan during their women's singles match, on the third day of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Romania's Mihaela Buzarnescu returns the ball to Britain's Katie Swan during their women's singles match, on the third day of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth, AP Image 8 of 10 Madison Keys of the US arrives for the women's singles match against Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Madison Keys of the US arrives for the women's singles match against Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand on the third day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. Photo: Ben Curtis, AP Image 9 of 10 A person sleeps by their tent before joining the entrance queue in Wimbledon Park on day three at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. (Philip Toscano/PA via AP) A person sleeps by their tent before joining the entrance queue in Wimbledon Park on day three at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Wednesday July 4, 2018. (Philip Toscano/PA via AP) Photo: Philip Toscano, AP Image 10 of 10 The Latest: Venus Williams comes back again at Wimbledon 1 / 10 Back to Gallery
LONDON (AP) — The Latest from Wimbledon (all times local):
3:15 p.m.
Five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams once again dropped the opening set, and once again dominated the rest of the way to win.
The No. 9 seed, at 38 the oldest woman in the draw, came back to beat 141st-ranked qualifier Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 to reach the third round at the All England Club.
Williams got broken in the first game and did not recover in the opening set, in which she made 12 unforced errors, twice as many as Dulgheru. Nine of those were errant forehands.
But the American, the runner-up at Wimbledon a year ago, then won seven games in a row.
In the first round, Williams started by ceding a tiebreaker against 58th-ranked Johanna Larsson before taking 12 of the last 15 games.
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3:05 p.m.
Lucas Pouille became the latest seeded player to exit the men's draw at Wimbledon after a 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (8), 3-6, 6-2 defeat to Austrian qualifier Dennis Novak.
The 17th-seeded Pouille saved two match points in the third-set tiebreaker before eventually forcing a fifth set, but Novak regrouped to reach the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time.
The 171st-ranked Novak defeated Peter Polansky on Monday to record the first Grand Slam victory of his career.
Novak will next face 2016 Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic, who hit 34 aces in his 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4) victory over John Millman.
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2:40 p.m.
Karolina Pliskova advanced to the third round of Wimbledon for the first time with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Victoria Azarenka.
Seventh-seeded Pliskova didn't face a break point as she cruised through a meeting of the two former No.1-ranked players on Centre Court.
It was the sixth time in seven main draw appearances at Wimbledon that 2016 U.S. Open runner-up Pliskova had advanced to the second round, but she had previously failed to go any further.
Two-time Australian Open champion Azarenka was vulnerable on her second serve throughout, winning just seven of 18 points on it.
Pliskova will next face 29th-seeded Mihaela Buzarnescu, after the Romanian defeated British wildcard Katie Swan 6-0, 6-3.
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2:25 p.m.
Milos Raonic hit 34 aces to beat John Millman of Australia in straight sets and reach the third round at Wimbledon.
The 2016 runner-up won 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4) in a match that only featured one break of serve for each player in the second set.
Raonic reached the third round for a sixth straight year, having lost to eventual champion Roger Federer in last year's quarterfinals.
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1:45 p.m.
Wimbledon's commercial director has no issues with Roger Federer pulling off a marketing coup on Centre Court.
Federer drew headlines around the world when he walked onto the court wearing a Uniqlo outfit on Monday for his opening match after ending his decades-long partnership with Nike. It was the first time the eight-time Wimbledon champion had worn the brand publicly, but organizers said he didn't violate any of their strict rules in regards to using the tournament for marketing purposes.
"I guess it was like a huge reveal, wasn't it?" said Mick Desmond, the commercial and media director for the All England Club. "That's absolutely fine. It's obviously a marketing coup for Roger. ... We set the stage, he's done a reveal."
Desmond said he was not aware of Federer's plans, though tournament staff check all players' kits before the tournament to make sure they don't violate any rules.
"Providing you're adhering to the specifications in terms of the all-white rule and the amount of measurement in terms of branding, then that's fine," Desmond said. "It would have been checked by the club in terms of a technical perspective. From a commercial perspective, that's his business."
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1:05 p.m.
Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania has become the first player to book a place in the third round of Wimbledon.
The 29th-seeded Buzarnescu beat Katie Swan of Britain 6-0, 6-3, clinching the match with a backhand winner on No. 3 Court. She was joined in the third round minutes later by 10th-seeded Madison Keys of the United States, who dispatched Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand 6-4, 6-3.
Buzarnescu is making her first appearance at the grass-court Grand Slam, having risen from 213th in the rankings a year ago to No. 28. Swan, ranked 204th, was given a wild-card entry to the tournament.
Keys reached the quarterfinals in 2015 but lost in the second round last year.
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11:45 a.m.
Play is underway on Day 3 at Wimbledon, with former finalist Milos Raonic of Canada among the early starters as the second round begins at the All England Club.
The 13th-seeded Raonic was playing John Millman of Australia as he bids to reach the third round for a sixth straight year. He lost the 2016 final to Andy Murray and reached the quarterfinals last year.
No. 10 Madison Keys of the United States was the highest-seeded woman in early action, playing Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand.
Roger Federer and Serena Williams were both set to play on Centre Court later.
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10:45 a.m.
Roger Federer and Serena Williams are both back on Centre Court at Wimbledon on Wednesday as they look to advance to the third round.
Federer will play Lukas Lacko of Slovakia as he continues his quest for a record-extending ninth title at the All England Club. Williams then faces Bulgarian qualifier Viktoriya Tomova as she goes for a 16th straight match win at the tournament — having missed last year while pregnant.
Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki and last year's men's runner-up, Marin Cilic, are also back in action as they try to avoid more upsets at the tournament. Three of the top-10 seeded men lost in the first round, while former champions Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova also went out on Tuesday.
The forecast calls for more sunny skies, although there is a 30 percent chance of rain showers in the afternoon.
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