There’s nothing like a deadline to focus the mind. Jannik Sinner stepped on to Centre Court here just after 7.30pm on Friday for his third-round clash with Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia, knowing that he had less than three and a half hours to complete the match before the 11pm curfew. Having gone three hours and 42 minutes in beating his fellow Italian Matteo Berrettini in the previous round, there was little margin for error.
As it happened, there was never any danger of the match being held over. With the roof closed due to rain, conditions were still and the world No 1 Sinner played in his typically efficient manner, done and dusted 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in just one hour and 36 minutes, sealing his place in the last 16 with the minimum of fuss.
