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Roger Federer, now of noble late vintage, remains the sweetest sight in all of tennis.
Sam Querrey, the powerful young American, did his best to summon his inner Sampras, hammering his opponent with aggressive serves from start to finish, but it served little purpose other than to illustrate the higher plain on to which the grand master has raised the game.
Querrey held his serve to love on several occasions in the first set, sending the gentlest undulations of tension around centre court that he could yet pose a genuine threat to what so many here still want to see almost more than another British victory, a final triumphant valediction for the finest sight this court has ever seen.
It didn’t last. In the ninth game of the first set, Federer finally broke him - the most opportune time to do so.
The second and third seemed little more than a formality. When match point came - only one was required - Feder had not yet reached the peak of his serene trajectory. 6-4. 6-2. 6-2.
With two rounds now gone, there can be no doubt that the Swiss has played by far the finest tennis of this year’s tournament.
As effortless as always, the one handed forehands and backhands exploded off the racket as if released from strained elastic.
But Federer has made a habit of dominating lesser mortals in a more complete fashion than his rivals in Valhalla. What he has done to Damir Džumhur in the first round, and now to Querrey, he simply cannot do to Messrs Murray, Nadal and Djokovic.
This vision of singular perfection in the centre court sunshine cannot be so flawless, when the shadow of fearsome beasts will be cast over its net in the coming days.
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