LONDON -- Novak Djokovic left Paris with his head down after losing a grisly final to Stan Wawrinka.
Late Friday afternoon, Djokovic was in a much better frame of mind as he sailed into the second week here at Wimbledon.
Djokovic defeated Australian Bernard Tomic 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 to advance to Monday's fourth round. He'll play big-serving Kevin Anderson, who was a 6-4, 7-6 (6), 6-3 winner against Leonardo Mayer.
Coming off the court, Djokovic was in a generous mood, posing for a selfie, pulling a coveted Wimbledon towel out of his bag for a fetching fan -- quite possibly a Wimbledon first.
"Yes, perhaps," Djokovic said later. "A gentleman gave me his artificial leg. I hope my signature is going to make him feel better."
Certainly, Djokovic is feeling better. Here are five takeaways from his encounter with Tomic:
Positioning himself for the stretch: The 28-year-old Serb has played nine sets and won them all, never surrendering more than four games. "I was hoping that I can play better and better as tournament progresses," Djokovic said, "and that's what happening right now. I feel more confident. I am pleased with the way I'm playing. It's definitely very close to where I want to be."
Serving with authority: Djokovic served 15 aces and placed his first serve successfully 72 percent of the time. "Very good serve today," he said. "I won a lot of free points, and takes a lot of pressure off your back."
Model of consistency: Make that 25 straight appearances in the fourth round at Grand Slams for the world No. 1. You have to go all the way back to the 2009 French Open to find the last time Djokovic lost in the third round or earlier. That year, Djokovic suffered a hasty three-set loss to Philipp Kohlschreiber, yes, the same Kohlschreiber whom Djokovic beat in straight sets just a few days ago in the opening round of Wimbledon. To put that into perspective, Roger Federer has fallen in the third round or earlier twice, Rafael Nadal three times and Andy Murray once in that span.
Down Under dominance: Not only has Djokovic won an Open era-record five Australian Open titles, it turns out the world No. 1 beats up on the Aussie players, too. With his win against Tomic, Djokovic has won 16 straight matches against Aussies, with his only tour-level loss coming against Lleyton Hewitt in the 2006 US Open.
On the offensive: Often the counterpuncher, Djokovic smacked 38 winners against Tomic, 13 more than his Aussie opponent. Against Kohlschreiber, Djokovic hit 36 winners, and against Jarkko Nieminen, 38. "I feel like this surface is being the fastest on the tour, demands the player to be more aggressive, to use more slice, more variety in his game," Djokovic had said after his second-round win.