Wimbledon 2015: Friday Results, Highlights, Scores Recap from All England Club

Third-round play brought some fantastic matches to All England Club Friday, but there is no question that the three-set battle between No. 1 Serena Williams and British youngster Heather Watson was the biggest highlight.

Williams was pushed to the limit and was very much on the verge of getting eliminated as she was down 0-3 in the third set, but she used her power, experience and mettle to survive, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5.

Also, French Open finalists Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka continued their recent run of success, while Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova prevailed on the women's side. The day wasn't without some big-name casualties, though, as No. 7 Milos Raonic, No. 11 Grigor Dimitrov, No. 14 Andrea Petkovic and No. 22 Samantha Stosur were all upset.

With Wimbledon's opening weekend on the horizon, here is a full listing of the singles results from Friday, in addition to a closer look at some of the biggest third-round happenings.

Friday's Men's Singles Results

Round	Winning Player	Losing Player	Score
Third Round	No. 26 Nick Kyrgios	No. 7 Milos Raonic	5-7, 7-5, 7-6(3), 6-3
Third Round	No. 16 David Goffin	Marcos Baghdatis	6-3, 6-4, 6-2
Third Round	No. 21 Richard Gasquet	No. 11 Grigor Dimitrov	6-3, 6-4, 6-4
Third Round	No. 4 Stan Wawrinka	Fernando Verdasco	6-4, 6-3, 6-4
Third Round	No. 14 Kevin Anderson	No. 24 Leonardo Mayer	6-4, 7-6(6), 6-3
Third Round	No. 1 Novak Djokovic	No. 27 Bernard Tomic	6-3, 6-3, 6-3
Third Round	Denis Kudla	Santiago Giraldo	6-2, 6-7(3), 2-6, 6-1, 6-3

Friday's Women's Singles Results

Round	Winning Player	Losing Player	Score
Third Round	No. 30 Belinda Bencic	Bethanie Mattek-Sands	7-5, 7-5
Third Round	No. 6 Lucie Safarova	Sloane Stephens	3-6, 6-3, 6-1
Third Round	Coco Vandeweghe	No. 22 Samantha Stosur	6-2, 6-0
Third Round	No. 4 Maria Sharapova	No. 29 Irina Begu	6-4, 6-3
Third Round	No. 23 Victoria Azarenka	Kristina Mladenovic	6-4, 6-4
Third Round	Zarina Diyas	No. 14 Andrea Petkovic	7-5, 6-4
Third Round	No. 1 Serena Williams	Heather Watson	6-2, 4-6, 7-5
Third Round	No. 16 Venus Williams	Aleksandra Krunic	6-3, 6-2

Breaking Down Top Storylines

Serena Narrowly Avoids Watson's Upset Bid

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

Serena enters every match as a heavy favorite, but that was especially true Friday as she faced an opponent who had never advanced past the third round at Wimbledon. Williams got all she could handle out of Watson, though, and needed a thrilling comeback to enter the round of 16 with a 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 win.

The match initially looked like it would be fairly straightforward for Serena as she cruised through the opening set, but things got messy when she dropped the second and Watson took a 3-0 lead in the third. It would have been easy for the world's No. 1 player to crumble under the pressure of playing in front of a partisan crowd that was clearly against her, but she didn't.

Williams committed 33 unforced errors and very nearly beat herself. After playing such a sloppy match, she admitted that she didn't necessarily deserve to come out on top, according to Carole Bouchard of The Yellow Ball Corner:

Serena also acknowledged just how tough of a fight Watson managed to put up, per BBC Sport:

Moral victories aren't likely to ease the pain of letting a win over the No. 1 seed slip away, but Watson showed a ton of ability in a losing effort Friday, and her showing should represent a huge step forward in the 23-year-old's development.

While Serena has to be relieved to have avoided disaster, she can't afford to rest on her laurels. A massive clash with her sister, Venus, is on tap for the fourth round, and it can be argued that Venus has a better chance than anyone to stop Serena's pursuit of a calendar Grand Slam.

Venus rolled past Aleksandra Krunic by a 6-3, 6-2 score Friday, and she looks like she has a real shot to win her sixth career Wimbledon title at the age of 35.

According to SI Tennis, Serena is fully aware that her older sister has been playing some fantastic tennis through three rounds:

Serena leads the all-time series between them 14-11, but Venus actually won their most recent meeting last year in Montreal. Considering the circumstances, Serena couldn't ask for a much tougher draw in the round of 16.

She'll still be expected by most to defeat her sister and continue her run toward the 2015 Grand Slam, but the air of invincibility she had entering the third round appears to be gone.

Djokovic, Wawrinka Continue to Roll

Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

The 2015 tennis season has largely been dominated by world No. 1 Novak Djokovic on the men's side, and Friday at Wimbledon featured more of the same as the Serbian superstar eased past No. 27 Bernard Tomic with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 victory.

Djoker is the defending champion at All England Club, and his title defense is looking great as he has yet to drop a set through three matches. That shouldn't come as much of a surprise since Nole has advanced to at least the semifinals at Wimbledon every year since 2011.

According to ESPN Stats and Info, he has been unbeatable in the early rounds of Grand Slams in recent years as well:

He never gave Tomic a chance to get comfortable Friday as he controlled the match from start to finish. Per Wimbledon's official Twitter account, Djoker's big and accurate serve was a big reason for that:

Nole excelled in all assets, though, which thoroughly impressed many, including BT Sport's Gary Lineker:

Djokovic was expected by most to run through inferior competition during this tournament, but Wawrinka entered the event with something more to prove. Despite beating Djoker to win the French Open, his place among tennis' elite players isn't yet cemented.

He took another huge step in that regard Friday by beating Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 to make it to the fourth round for the second consecutive year at Wimbledon.

Grass has traditionally been Wawrinka's worst surface, but he is in such good form that he seems poised to come through with his best ever result at All England Club.

Things are lining up for Djokovic and Wawrinka to lock horns once again in the semifinals, and if they continue playing at their current level, that could be one of the best tennis matches of the year.

Sharapova Advances Into Round of 16

Julian Finney/Getty Images

It wasn't necessarily a textbook performance from Sharapova, but the fourth-seeded player took care of business Friday against No. 29 Irina-Camelia Begu with a 6-4, 6-3 triumph.

Things were even between the 2004 Wimbledon champion and her underdog opponent for much of the opening set, but Sharapova took it with a late break, and then proceeded to win the first five games of the second set.

Things got nervous for the Russian favorite after that as Begu reeled off three straight games of her own, but Sharapova was ultimately able to slam the door shut. Despite her struggles at times, Sharapova was glad to move into the fourth round, according to BBC Sport:

"

I made it more difficult for myself in the first set but I felt good in the second set. She was not going to away so I was happy I was able to finish it off. 

You expect to go further and on to better things. As the matches get tougher, you have to raise your game and that's why there's only one champion. 

You have to have the belief and I absolutely do. You don't work all these hours in practice to not believe in yourself. I want to be the winner and I will do my best to do so.

"

Although it didn't come back to bite her, Sharapova suffered through stretches of sub-par play during the match. That is nothing new, as she has a penchant for up-and-down performances, but as pointed out by Andrew Jerell Jones of the Guardian, she has been far from her best thus far at All England Club:

Despite her obvious shortcomings, Sharapova is in a good spot entering the fourth round as she will face unseeded Zarina Diyas before a potential meeting with either French Open finalist Lucie Safarova or American upstart Coco Vandeweghe in the quarters.

Those all represent winnable matches for Sharapova, although she'll have to refine her game to a certain degree in order to avoid an upset loss and another fairly early exit at All England Club. 

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