Serve & Volley Naresh Kumar

After a week of torrential rain, interspersed with glimpses of sunshine, Wimbledon has managed to separate most of the chaff from the grain. Many seeded players have gone out with the chaff, but the top four in both the men’s and the ladies’ events have not been threatened.

In both events, the lower half of the draw are yet to move from the third round to the fourth. Mauresmo and Sharapova were the only ones to have moved into the last-16 in the one hour of play possible on Saturday.

Federer seems to be on track for a fifth consecutive Wimbledon title. He was at his awesome best in the match against Safin. The nightmare of his loss to Nadal in Paris was forgotten. The Roland Garros loss was like a wake-up call which spurred Federer to climb to his usual peak.

The ladies’ event is wide open. The Williams sisters are still there, though their tennis continues to be patchy. They don’t seem to have the substance to match their rhetoric. In view of the fact that Sharapova’s shoulder is suspect, Henin has an outstanding chance of winning her first Wimbledon title.

From the flanks of the Serbian forces of Djokovic, Jankovic and Ivanovic emerged yet another challenger, the unseeded Janko Tipsarevic. He won the match of the first week, against Chilean fifth seed Fernando Gonzalez.

Tipsarevic came from 2-5 in the final set to clinch it 8-6. Tipsarevic captivated the Centre Court with his militant and fearless attitude. A do-or-die aggression, reminiscent of a Mongol warrior, won the day for him.

Indian hopes, which had rocketed after Sania Mirza’s resounding victory over Russian Yarsolava Shvedova, came crashing down when 11th seed Nadia Petrova thrashed her 6-2, 6-2 in the second round. It is now amply clear that if Sania wants to get higher in the rankings, she has to be able to keep the ball in play for a minimum of five-six rallies at top speed.

Just one punishing shot, such as her forehand, is certainly not enough.

Sania has made much progress. She looks fit and trim, but has a long way to go. She must continue to persevere, develop and exploit her talent to the hilt. One wonders if the clock has stopped on Sania’s 15 minutes of fame at the Grand Slam level. I hope not.