Sabalenka aces examination against Ostapenko

If this was meant to be a tough test of Aryna Sabalenka's grasscourt pedigree at ​this year's Wimbledon, the Belarusian passed it with flying colours ‌as she handed Jelena Ostapenko a 6-4 6-4 reality check to reach the fourth round on Friday.

When on target, the Latvian's bludgeoning shots ​can knock out anyone, as Sabalenka was only ​too aware of after losing their most recent encounter ⁠in last year's Stuttgart final.

Add in the fact that Ostapenko ​owns two grasscourt titles to Sabalenka's zero, the world number ​one might have thought she was in for a sticky afternoon on a glorious sunny day on Centre Court.

The exchanges were fast and ​furious, the rallies were almost non-existent and the supercharged speed ​at which Sabalenka crossed the finishing line would have even impressed Royal ‌Box ⁠guest Usain Bolt.

A break in the fifth game handed Sabalenka the advantage which she never relinquished as she sealed the opening set with a 111 mph ace.

Ostapenko, the 2017 Roland ​Garros champion, saved ​one match ⁠point on her serve at 4-5 down in the second set but there was no ​reprieve one game later as the Belarusian top ​seed ⁠clenched her fist in victory after watching Ostapenko's service return float long.

Sabalenka had given herself an 8-out-of-10 rating for her first-round ⁠performance ​and 9-out-of-10 for the follow up.

The ​authoritative way she dispatched danger opponent Ostapenko on Friday meant she was ​now heading for perfection.