[ESPN]
WIMBLEDON, England — Three times on a single point, Serena Williams hit a serve that clipped the net before plopping into the service box for a let, a sequence that drew giggles from the Centre Court crowd.
Otherwise there was no way to slow Williams on Wednesday. She hit 12 aces and repeatedly rocketed her groundstrokes past No. 13-seeded Vera Zvonareva to win 6-1, 6-0 and reach the Olympic quarterfinals.
Swinging lustily with almost every shot, the No. 4-seeded Williams hit 32 winners to three for the Russian, who also lost when they met in the 2010 Wimbledon final. Williams swept the final 10 games and was done in only 51 minutes.
“I was just playing unbelievable,” Williams said. “I was nervous going into the match and I didn’t speak to anyone and I had a bad practice. I had no idea I would play like this.”