July 1 (Reuters) - Wimbledon's second round continues on Thursday with French Open champion Alexander Zverev facing Frenchman Valentin Royer, defending champion Iga Swiatek taking on former world number one Karolina Pliskova and an all-American battle between Amanda Anisimova and Sofia Kenin.
TOP MEN'S MATCH: VALENTIN ROYER V ALEXANDER ZVEREV
Success on grass has always eluded world number three Zverev. The German, who won the French Open last month, has no ATP titles on the surface, and has never progressed beyond the fourth round at Wimbledon.
The 29-year-old, who was tested in the first round by Alexander Blockx over four hard-fought sets, has revealed that his struggles on the surface go beyond his skills: he is actually allergic to grass.
"A lot of pills, a lot of sneezing and a lot of stuffed nose, unfortunately ... I do feel fine, I'm not sick or anything," Zverev said when asked how he deals with his allergy.
But Zverev believes he can succeed on the surface and have his best Wimbledon campaign yet if he can get some momentum going with confidence-boosting wins in the early rounds.
"I still at times struggle, there's no secret about it. But ... I'm getting older, hopefully I'm getting better as well," he said ahead of his second-round clash with world number 75 Royer.
TOP WOMEN'S MATCH: KAROLINA PLISKOVA V IGA SWIATEK
Swiatek's three-set tussle with Taylor Townsend was a first-round treat for the crowd, but the Polish defending champion certainly felt the pressure, making nine double faults and fighting to hold back her tears after the win.
"I don’t think I won any three set match this year. I’m happy I could do it here," said six-time Grand Slam winner Swiatek, who is yet to reach a final in 2026.
The 25-year-old, who has made changes to her footwork, said last month she did not expect immediate success, but will look for a quick win over Pliskova to restore confidence.
Former world number one Pliskova, a Wimbledon finalist in 2021 but now ranked 73, is still fighting to get back to her best after missing most of last year with a severe knee injury.
But with the world number three struggling, the 34-year-old will fancy her chances of finally getting a win over Swiatek after three straight losses.
ANISIMOVA, KENIN IN ALL-AMERICAN BATTLE
Last year's finalist Amanda Anisimova started her campaign on a strong note with a composed straight-sets win over Lina Gjorcheska, signalling a return to form after a wrist injury that disrupted her claycourt season.
"I think the last two months really took a lot out of me," said the sixth seed, who crashed out of the French Open's third round after a run to the Australian Open's quarter-finals this year.
"It was definitely a bit of a strange experience, having to train and train and not knowing if I’m ready to play the tournaments."
But in fellow American Sofia Kenin, Anisimova faces a puzzle she has struggled to solve, having won only once in their three meetings.
Former Australian Open champion Kenin is far from her old self as she has not won a WTA title in six years and is ranked 105 in the world, but looked dominant against Anisimova last year in Charleston. Kenin was 5-2 ahead when Anisimova retired with an injury.
Kenin, who has reached the second round of a major for the first time since last year's Wimbledon, got an encouraging win over Petra Marcinko in the first round, and will count herself in for an upset.
WIMBLEDON ORDER OF PLAY ON THURSDAY (prefix number denotes seeding)
CENTRE COURT (Play begins at 1230 GMT)
Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) v 3-Iga Swiatek (Poland)
Matteo Berrettini (Italy) v 20-Arthur Fils (France)
Caty McNally (U.S.) v 2-Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan)
COURT NUMBER ONE (Play begins at 1200 GMT)
Katie Swan (Britain) v 26-Madison Keys (U.S.)
Valentin Royer (France) v 2-Alexander Zverev (Germany)
15-Jakub Mensik (Czech Republic) v Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgaria)
COURT NUMBER TWO (Play begins at 1000 GMT)
6-Taylor Fritz (U.S.) v Patrick Kypson (U.S.)
6-Amanda Anisimova (U.S.) v Sofia Kenin (U.S.)
17-Frances Tiafoe (U.S.) v Jan Choinski (Britain)
13-Jasmine Paolini (Italy) v Viktorija Golubic (Switzerland)
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Alison Williams)
