Olympic Results 2012: Most Impressive Tennis Performances of Day 3

After a typical rainy day in London rained out most of the matches on Sunday, the players had some catching up to do on the third day of the Olympic tennis tournament. It made for a star-studded day at the All England Club with many of the sport's biggest names on the courts.

With so many players in action, there were no shortage of terrific performances, but some stood out above the rest. Let's take a look at the three most impressive victories from Monday as players continued their pursuit of a gold medal.

Venus Williams

Even though the older Williams sister hasn't been able to match the success of her younger sister in recent years, she still has plenty of game when healthy. The elder Williams knocked out ninth-ranked Sara Errani to reach the second round.

Beating a player ranked in the Top 10 is an accomplishment in itself for Williams, who was knocked out of Wimbledon in the first round. But she did so in such convincing fashion—losing just four games—that she opened a lot of eyes around the tennis world.

Today should serve as a huge confidence boost for Williams. It was proven that she can still hold her own against top-tier players when fortunate enough to escape the injury bug.

Roger Federer

Julien Benneteau was able to take the first two sets from Federer at Wimbledon a couple of weeks ago. That would have been enough to win on Monday in a best-of-three match. He wasn't as fortunate today, as the Swiss sensation advanced with ease.

It was another astonishing outing from Federer, who smacked 24 winners to go along with just seven unforced errors. Ever since making the second week of Wimbledon, which he went on to win, it seems like he's found a zone.

An Olympic gold medal in singles is just about the only thing Federer hasn't accomplished during his career. Don't think that isn't weighing on him heavily as he makes his way through this tournament.

Vera Zvonareva

Zvonareva easily dispatched Francesca Schiavone in what was supposed to be one of the day's closest matches. Schiavone is a wily veteran with a lot of big-match experience, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Russian's backhand prowess.

It was important for Zvonareva to pick up an easy victory on Monday because her next match will be against Serena Williams. It takes a lot of belief in order to knock of the defending Wimbledon champion, and Zvonareva should get a lot for her win.

She will have to raise her level of play once again in order to keep things close against Williams, but at least she will enter the match on a high note after a great showing.