China's Wang Qiang powers into 2nd round at Wimbledon

LONDON - Fifteenth-seeded Wang Qiang of China avoided another first-round exit at Wimbledon, beating Vera Lapko of Belarus 6-2, 6-2 in under one hour.

Her victory today has equalized her best record at Wimbledon and comes a year after she was beaten by compatriot Zheng Saisai in the first round. In 2017, she reached the second round but eventually lost to Venus Williams. Wang has made great progress in recent years and she rises to the 15th in world rankings.

Wang breezed to the win, firing off five aces on 80% first serve shooting and 68% on the second. Wang has been working with Safina's former coach Pancho Alvarino from May this year. These results suggest that his serve guidance is doing the trick.

Other action saw Zheng Saisai of China beaten by top-seeded Ashleigh Barty of Australia 6-4, 6-2. Last year, Zheng beat Wang Qiang to move into the second round at Wimbledon, but went on to lose to then top-seed Simona Halep.