Ruthless Maria Sharapova cruises into Wimbledon fourth round

The Russian, seeded fifth for the tournament, has not lost since May 15 in Rome and extended her fine form with a 6-3 6-0 thrashing on Centre Court on Saturday.

Sharapova suffered a surprise break of serve in the opening game of the match, but it was plain sailing after that as she won 11 consecutive games to take her place in the fourth round.

Riske's strong start saw her lead 3-1. However, the world number 44 was quickly overpowered by Sharapova, who has still not dropped a set in her three matches at Wimbledon this year and has only lost seven games.

The forehand power and elegance around the court saw Sharapova wrestle control of the match from the fifth game, with the Russian firing 12 winners to take the opening set.

A bad day got even worse for Riske as her 27-year-old opponent showed no mercy in a second set she totally dominated.

With victory in sight, Sharapova cranked her focus and determination up to a new level as Riske only won 10 points, while the world number five fired down two aces and 13 winners.

While other players in her half of the draw were delayed due to rain on the outside courts, Sharapova will now have chance to rest before facing the winner of Angelique Kerber and Kirsten Flipkens on Tuesday.