Wimbledon 2019: Serena Williams, Nadal, Federer Wins Highlight Saturday Results

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer both progressed from the third round of 2019 Wimbledon on Saturday. Nadal saw off Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in straight sets before Federer did the same to Lucas Pouille.

The women's bracket saw Great Britain's Johanna Konta send ninth seed Sloane Stephens crashing out, while top seed Ashleigh Barty also made it through after proving too much for Harriet Dart.

Typically, though, the spotlight belonged to Serena Williams, who delivered a gritty performance during a straight-sets victory over Julia Goerges.

Saturday Results

Men's Singles

• (3) Rafael Nadal bt. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga: 6-2, 6-3, 6-2
• (2) Roger Federer bt. (27) Lucas Pouille: 7-5, 6-2, 7-6(4)
• (8) Kei Nishikori bt. Steve Johnson: 6-4, 6-3, 6-2
• Tennys Sandgren bt. (12) Fabio Fognini: 6-3, 7-6(12), 6-3
• (17) Matteo Berrettini bt. (24) Diego Schwartzman: 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3
• Sam Querrey bt. John Millman: 7-6(3), 7-6(8), 6-3
• Mikhail Kukushkin bt. (33) Jan-Lennard Struff: 6-3, 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-5

Women's Singles

• (1) Ashleigh Barty bt. Harriet Dart: 6-1, 6-1
• (11) Serena Williams bt. (18) Julia Goerges: 6-3, 6-4
• (19) Johanna Konta bt. (9) Sloane Stephens: 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
• (6) Petra Kvitova bt. Magda Linette: 6-3, 6-2
• Barbora Strycova bt. (4) Kiki Bertens: 7-5, 6-1
• Alison Riske bt. (13) Belinda Bencic: 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
• (21) Elise Mertens bt. (15) Qiang Wang: 6-2, 6-7(9), 6-4
• (30) Carla Suarez Navarro bt. Lauren Davis: 6-3, 6-3

Nadal was in imperious form from the off, sauntering through the opening set against an overwhelmed Tsonga. Things didn't get much better in the second as the world No. 2 exerted more control.

Nadal had a stranglehold on the tie after wrapping up another set, and he was then close to flawless in the third to comfortably book a place in the fourth round.

It was just reward after the Spaniard hit 35 winners and converted five break points, per the tournament's official website. Nadal set a pace Tsonga couldn't cope with, and the Frenchman was guilty of 22 unforced errors.

Federer was made to work harder by Tsonga's countryman Pouille. A 7-5 win put the Swiss in front and inspired him to make quicker work of the second.

The eight-time Wimbledon champion still needed to survive a tiebreak to salt away the third, though. While he's played better, Federer still looks like a player with the knack for winning on the grass at SW19.

Finding a credible challenger for Federer and Nadal's established dominance isn't easy, but Kei Nishikori has the talent to upset the natural order. The 29-year-old was efficient in key moments against Steve Johnson, and if he continues keeping his errors down, Nishikori could be primed for an upset or two.

There were also wins for Sam Querrey and Matteo Berrettini, with the latter overcoming Diego Schwartzman in a five-set epic. Bigger upsets were in store for Fabio Fognini and Jan-Lennard Struff, who were beaten by Tennys Sandgren and Mikhail Kukushkin, respectively.

Williams reasserted herself in the women's bracket by powering Goerges off the court. Hitting seven aces and holding serve throughout the match let Williams keep the German on her heels.

Rather than leaning too heavily on her service game, Williams also showcased her movement skills by winning 12 of 13 points at the net.

It's no surprise to see Williams go through to the next round, but Konta has upped her game considerably. She broke serve three times and excelled at the net to earn a place in the tournament's second week.

As much as her range of shots caught the eye, Konta deserved praise for her resilience after Stephens forged into a one-set lead, an advantage she doesn't usually relinquish:

Konta was good, but Barty was close to awesome as she hammered Dart while losing just two games in the process. Barty had too much strength as she smashed 11 aces and converted all five break points she forced.

On this form, Barty remains the player to beat in the women's bracket.

There will be no shortage of competition after Petra Kvitova, Elise Mertens and Carla Suarez Navarro also made it through. They will be joined by Alison Riske and Barbora Strycova, with the latter earning the upset of the day after shocking fourth seed Kiki Bertens in straight sets.