Federer humiliates Henman

Defending champion Roger Federer ripped Tim Henman's Wimbledon dreams to shreds with a majestic 6-4 6-0 6-2 win in the second round yesterday.

The much-hyped battle between the world number one and the four-times Wimbledon semi-finalist turned into a one-man show after Federer floored Henman with a breathtaking display of grasscourt tennis.

The home favourite had been expected to challenge Federer's record run of 42 successive victories on grass but he had no answer when the Swiss conjured outrageous winners to take 11 games on the trot.

Also yesterday, holder Venus Williams, world number one Amelie Mauresmo and 2004 champion Maria Sharapova began their Wimbledon campaigns in convincing fashion, dropping just three games between them.

Monday's rain meant the high-powered trio had to wait longer than expected to stride out on the plush All England Club lawns, but they came out firing on all cylinders, as did former men's champions Lleyton Hewitt who thrashed Italian Filippo Volandri.

Third seed Andy Roddick, runner-up for the last two years, was given a scare, though, before breaking the resistance of tenacious Serb Janko Tipsarevic.

Williams, looking for a fourth Wimbledon title, beat fellow American Bethanie Mattek 6-1 6-0 with a performance of controlled aggression that will give her plenty of confidence after a frustrating stop-start year.

Mauresmo, the top seed for the first time at Wimbledon, was even more impressive with a 'double bagel' 6-0 6-0 defeat of hapless Croatian qualifier Ivana Abramovic, conceding just five points in the second set.

Sharapova, marked her return to her favourite hunting ground with a high-octane 6-2 6-0 victory over Israel's Anna Smashnova, while Kim Clijsters reached the third round after getting a walkover against a sick Viktoriya Kutuzova.

Australian sixth seed Hewitt, the last men's champion before Federer's three-year reign began, celebrated his return to the world's top 10 with a ruthless 6-1 6-1 6-3 first round win over Volandri.

While Hewitt was scuttling into the second round, Roddick lacked inspiration against Tipsarevic and lost a first set tiebreak before posting a 6-7 6-4 7-6 6-2 victory. David Nalbandian moved into the third round with the minimum of fuss, the Argentine fourth seed beating France's Arnaud Clement 6-4 6-4 6-3.

There were some high-profile casualties on day three. Russian Nikolay Davydenko, the men's ninth seed, lost 6-2 6-7 7-6 6-3 to Colombian qualifier Alejandro Falla, while women's 11th seed Francesca Schiavone of Italy was bundled out by British wildcard Melanie South, the world number 305.

Results: Henin bt Bychkova 6-2 6-1; Hingis bt Garbin 6-1 6-2. Mirnyi bt Philippoussis 7-6 6-4 6-7 6-3.