London, Jun 27: Kimiko Date-Krumm became the oldest woman to reach the third round of Wimbledon in the Open era Thursday by beating Alexandra Cadantu of Romania 6-4, 7-5.
The 42-year-old Japanese veteran is the second-oldest player to have won a match at Wimbledon after Martina Navratilova, who was 47 when she reached the second round in 2004.
Date-Krumm beat the 23-year-old Cadantu to advance to the third round of Wimbledon for the first time since 1996, when she made it to the semifinals. She took a 12-year break from tennis before returning in 2008.
After beating the 23-year-old Cadantu, Date-Krumm could face top-seeded Serena Williams in the third round.
Sixth-seeded Li Na of China also advanced, bouncing back from a poor second set to beat Simona Halep of Romania 6-2, 1-6, 6-0.
