Wimbledon Day 6 matches to watch: Nadal, Sharapova, Federer take Centre Court
LONDON -- These are the matches to watch on Day 6 of Wimbledon. Play begins on the outer courts at 6:30 a.m. ET and at 8 a.m. ET on Centre Court and Court 1. ESPN's live coverage begins at 8 a.m. ET. Click here for the order of play, and see the full TV schedule here.
Storylines
The best action probably won't be on Centre Court: Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova and Roger Federer get the Centre Court treatment, but they shouldn't face much opposition. Nadal opens play against No. 63 Mikhail Kukushkin, and Sharapova follows that match against No. 44 Alison Riske. The 23-year-old American is great on grass, but Sharapova has looked especially sharp through her first two rounds. Finally, Federer plays No. 35 Santiago Giraldo, who is far better on clay than grass. There shouldn't be any drama here.
Match of the day: No. 19 Sabine Lisicki vs. No. 11 Ana Ivanovic (Second match, No. 1 Court): Can Lisicki's Wimbledon magic carry her through another run to the second week? Last year's finalist hasn't lost a set through her first two rounds but she gets a huge test against Ivanovic, who is on a seven-match winning streak on grass after winning her first grass title in Birmingham two weeks ago. The two have played just once in their careers -- on clay earlier this year -- and Ivanovic won 6-1, 6-3. The German's big serve will challenge Ivanovic's patience, but given her recent results, she should be the more confident player in the tight moments. That could be the difference here.
No. 1 Serena Williams seeks revenge over No. 25 Alize Cornet (First match, No. 1 Court): Cornet handed Serena a shocking loss in February in the semifinals of the Dubai Championships, winning 6-4, 6-4. Serena has lost just five games through two matches, and she looked incredibly strong in her second round win, while Cornet has already had to scrap through two three-setters.
John Isner takes on Feliciano Lopez, the hottest player on grass (Second match No. 3 Court): The No. 19-seeded Spaniard is 11-1 on grass this season -- he made the final at Queen's Club and won Eastbourne last week. In fact over the last two seasons he's 20-3 on grass, with his lefty serve and serve-and-volley skills paying huge dividends on the surface. Isner leads the head-to-head 2-1, but Lopez won the only match that was played in a best-of-five format, tallying a five-set win at the 2012 Australian Open. The Spaniard is full of confidence right now.
Head to Court 17 for the Wimbledon Kids' Table: Madison Keys, Nick Kyrgios and Jiri Vesely will call Court 17 home for the afternoon. In the first match on court, Kyrgios, 19, takes on Vesely, 20, for a spot in the fourth round. Despite being younger and more inexperienced, Kyrgios has already proven himself to be a better competitor than Vesely. Both men are coming off big five-set wins. Madison Keys, 19, follows them in the second match. The Eastbourne champion has carried her form into Wimbledon, and she has a great chance to reach the fourth round against No. 65 Yaroslava Shvedova, she of Golden Set fame. This is their first meeting.
More matches to watch
No. 13 Eugenie Bouchard vs. No. 20 Andrea Petkovic: Petkovic got the better of Bouchard earlier this season in a tough three-set win on the green clay in Charleston, which Petkovic prefers. Now the roles are reversed. Bouchard is a former Wimbledon junior champion, and her game -- flat hitting and taking the ball early -- is perfect for grass. Petkovic is a self-professed grass-hater. Expect the Canadian to come through.
No. 3 Simona Halep vs. No. 71 Belinda Bencic (second match, No. 2 Court): This is the first meeting between the two, and it should be fun to watch Bencic, 18, take a shot at Halep. The Swiss No. 1 says she has nothing lose going into this match. Halep is coming off a three-set win over Lesia Tsurenko on Friday, and the Romanian showed a surprising drop in consistency in that match let her opponent back into it.
