Champion Venus Williams and second seed Rafael Nadal survived a few anxious moments to reach the third round of Wimbledon, while Lindsay Davenport bowed out without hitting a ball on Thursday.
Williams, seeking a fifth singles title at the All England Club, had to draw on all her big-match experience to repel world number 92 Anne Keothavong 7-5, 6-2.
Nadal also endured some first-set jitters before he toppled rising Latvian Ernests Gulbis 5-7, 6-2, 7-6, 6-3.
Davenport, winner here in 1999, pulled out of her second round match against Argentina's Gisela Dulko with a right knee injury.
The American, who has been struggling with the problem in recent months, then hinted she might have played her last match at the All England Club.
Asked if she would be back at Wimbledon in 2009, the 32-year-old said: "I guess not... I'm very shortsighted right now in my future, my goals.
"There's no question I'm a little bit older and a little bit more fragile than some other players."
AFTERNOON STROLL
Williams also looked rather fragile at times on Thursday. The 28-year-old had been expected to enjoy an afternoon stroll on Centre Court but ran into an opponent who was determined to make the most of her moment in the spotlight.
Keothavong is the only British woman to have broken into the top 100 this century but her record would hardly have raised any alarms for the seventh seed.
The 24-year-old Londoner had won only one match in seven previous visits to the All England Club and her overall title count stood at zero compared with 36 for Williams.
But neither those numbers nor the daunting presence of Williams striding across the net could faze Keothavong.
While gusting winds threw Williams off balance, Keothavong kept plugging away from the baseline to earn eight break points in the fifth game of the opening set.
But she simply did not possess the weapons or the self-belief to convert any and Williams eventually bagged the set after 69 excruciating minutes.
"I like to have it go my way and I'm glad that it did go my way, but that's not necessarily exactly how I planned it," Williams said. Things did not go according to plan for Nadal either.
The Spaniard had been hoping for a brisk workout against the 48th ranked Gulbis but instead found himself dropping a set at a Grand Slam for the first time since the Australian Open in January.
The 22-year-old, who romped to his fourth successive French Open title earlier this month without dropping a set, slipped and slid at the baseline but regained his composure to wear down Gulbis.
Attempting to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to win Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same season, Nadal will next be up against Germany's Nicolas Kiefer.
Britain's number one Andy Murray swept into the third round with an impressive 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 win over Belgian Xavier Malisse.
In the first set, the 12th seed served superbly and used exquisite drop shots to great effect. One break of serve in the fifth game was all he needed to take the lead.
The Scotsman, bidding to become Britain's first Wimbledon men's winner in 72 years, dominated the dispirited Belgian in a one-sided second set despite letting his serve slip once.
The lanky 21-year-old, who like Malisse missed parts of last season with a wrist injury, took an early break in the third set and maintained the momentum for a solid victory with a thundering ace.
