Quick wake-up call all Serena Williams needs to move on

— -- WIMBLEDON -- Annika Beck was to Serena Williams on Sunday what a decent cup of morning coffee is to the rest of us.

If the six-time Wimbledon champ needed a little jolt to pass Chris Evert for Grand Slam match win No. 300, Beck's early service break on Centre Court seemed to do just the trick.

Playing on the first middle Sunday here in 12 years, Williams shook off her boredom or whatever made her look like she woke up in a bad mood, and like the aftermath of the infamous racket smash in her previous match, she went to work.

Winning 11 of the last 12 games, including the last seven, Williams polished off the 43rd-ranked German 6-3, 6-0 in 51 minutes to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon.

"I think the [Christina] McHale match really helped me," Williams said, referring to her second-round encounter last week. "To be honest, I felt like losing that first set so tight and her playing better than she's ever played in her life really helped me to realize that I can play better."

Williams' coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, told ESPN.com on Saturday that Serena was "too calm" at the French Open, where she was defeated in the final by Garbine Muruguza. He was glad to see a little rage in her racket-smashing moment during a changeover against McHale.

On Sunday, Williams was aggressive only in her on-court play, finishing with 25 winners to only 14 unforced errors. Williams cracked seven aces and limited Beck to four points in the second set, all on the return of serve.

"I wasn't sure what the stats were, obviously, but on that last service game, I was thinking, 'Have I lost on my first serve yet?'" Williams said. "I wasn't sure, but I just tried to stay focused.

"It gives me a lot of confidence. I know what it takes to win these tournaments. It's just about now just doing it."

Clearly that is tougher than it looks, as another No. 1 can attest.

Asked what she thought of watching fellow American Sam Querrey derail Novak Djokovic's pursuit of a calendar-year Slam on Saturday, Williams said she was surprised Djokovic didn't come back from his two-set deficit to win.

"But it happens to all of us," said Williams, who lost her bid to sweep all four majors when she was defeated in last year's US Open semifinals. "Every time I step out on the court, if I don't win, it's major national news. But if I do win, it's just like a small tag in the corner."

If that sounds like a burden, Williams said it isn't any longer.

"I look at it almost like something that's really awesome to be in that position. There are only two people you can say that about out of all the athletes," Williams said of herself and Djokovic.

Williams will next face 13th-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, who rallied back from a 5-2 third-set deficit to eliminate American Sloane Stephens 6-7 (1), 6-2, 8-6.

Williams is 9-3 against her upcoming Russian opponent, although Kuznetsova won their last meeting, a three-set upset at the Miami Open in March. The two have yet to play on grass.

"We're both ready for this match," Williams said. "We're both going to give it our heart, as we always do when we play each other."

While Mouratoglou has worried about Williams' level of motivation since the US Open, during which time she finished as the runner-up at both the Australian and French opens, he said it is definitely "not OK" with her to finish anywhere short of winning the title and maintaining her No. 1 ranking.

"She hates [losing]," Mouratoglou said. "She's not losing in the second round, third round, quarters. She was two times in the final and two sets away from the Grand Slam, so this is definitely not satisfying at all to stop there.

"Serena wants to be No. 1. She wants to win Grand Slams because when you win Grand Slams, you are a champion. If she feels she is not a champion anymore, then she will not enjoy it and she won't play."