WATCH | Wimbledon 2017: Nervous Roger Federer eases past Dusan Lajovic into third round

Roger Federer has risen above mere mortals on Wimbledon’s lawns over the past 14 years so it was almost comforting to learn the king of cool had an attack of nerves before his second-round match on Thursday.

Usually so serene on his Centre Court stage, the 35-year-old Swiss was visibly snatching at some shots early on against 79th-ranked Serb Dusan Lajovic and dropped his first service game before ironing out the kinks to win 7-6(0) 6-3 6-2.

His record-extending 86th win at the All England Club put him closer to becoming the first man to claim eight Wimbledon singles titles, having first lifted the trophy in 2003, but it was far from a routine day at the office for the 35-year-old.

“I was feeling nerves for some reason. Not sure why,” third seed Federer, who will face German serve-and-volleyer Mischa Zverev in round three, told reporters.

“It was definitely more acute than I normally feel it. It was just like all of a sudden I was walking up to the locker room after my warm-up and I was feeling excited and nervous. Then when I walked to the court it was still ongoing and after the warm-up it was …read more