Bad day for Sharapova, Federer grits teeth
Bad day for Sharapova, Federer grits teeth
Maria Sharapova has had better days, Roger Federer more
mobile ones and local sun-hat sellers more profitable ones as
Wimbledon's manic Monday turned into a bit of a damp squib after several
days of nerve-shredding drama.
Beaten comfortably by Germany's Sabine Lisicki
, top
seed Sharapova's dream of a French Open/Wimbledon double ended in
tatters under miserable grey skies and her world No.1 ranking looks
almost certain to follow.
At least Federer is still standing, although for a
while against erratic Belgian Xavier Malisse that seemed an effort in
itself for the six-times champion.
Struggling with a bad back in chilly conditions on
Centre Court, the king of cool needed two undignified injury time-outs
during a 7-6 6-1 4-6 6-3 victory that continued his remarkable run of
grand slam quarter-final appearances.
He remained on course for a semi-final against
defending champion Novak Djokovic who thrashed fellow Serb Viktor
Troicki 6-3 6-1 6-3.
The pigeons were again looking nervously about after
the safe return of Rufus, the club's harrier hawk employed to scare them
away who was stolen last week.
Feathers fluttering down from the Centre Court roof
during second seed Victoria Azarenka's 6-1 6-0 win over Ana Ivanovic may
have been proof that Rufus, who resumes work on Tuesday, had been
missed.
While the women's quarter-final line-up is complete,
five men's fourth-round matches were unfinished due to persistent rain
in south west London.
Home favourite Andy Murray must try to finish off Marin
Cilic on Tuesday after taking a one-set lead and fifth seed Jo-Wilfried
Tsonga will resume a set down against Mardy Fish.
Serena Williams and Petra Kvitova also beat the rain to set up a juicy last-eight clash in the women's singles.
Williams, seeking a fifth Wimbledon singles title to
equal the total of her sister Venus, scrambled through to the
quarter-finals for the 10th time with a 6-1 2-6 7-5 win over powerful
Kazakh Yaroslava Shvedova.
FEARSOME ROAR
Stretched to the limit, the 30-year-old Williams
produced a sensational backhand top-spin lob from deep in the corner at
6-5, 30-30 in the second set and sealed victory with a pummelled winner
before letting out a fearsome roar.
"I don't know if that was luck, per se, but it was
definitely ‑ unintentional I think is a better word," Williams said of
the contender for shot of the tournament.
Sharapova gave a performance on Court One as grey as
the weather in a 6-4 6-3 defeat by Lisicki who will face fellow German
Angelique Kerber in the quarter-finals.
Kerber showed no sentiment in thrashing four-times
grand slam champion Kim Clijsters 6-1 6-1 on what was the soon-to-retire
Belgian's final match at the championships.
"Wimbledon to me was like Disneyland to another child.
So it was such a beautiful thing," said popular Belgian Clijsters who
will get one more shot at glory on the grasscourts at the Olympic Games
later this month.
The toil of winning the French Open for the first time seemed to catch up with Sharapova against Lisicki.
"You always try to find ways to get into it, even if
you feel your level is just not there," Sharapova said. "Maybe you're
just a little slow, you try to pump yourself up."
"She did many things much better than me today."
Asked about the possible imminent loss of her top
ranking to Azarenka, or even Agnieszka Radwanska who beat Camila Giorgi
to reach the last eight, Sharapova said: "Obviously what I achieved a
few weeks ago doesn't just go away in a few minutes. I'll have that for
the rest of my career."
The sight of Federer lumbering around the court with a
stiff back would have been quite enlightening for the mere mortals who
marvel at the Swiss's graceful movements.
He seemed ill at ease in establishing a 4-3 lead
against Malisse, at which point he left the court for eight minutes to
have treatment on his lower back.
When he returned his serves were half-paced and he was
walking gingerly between points. However, when Malisse served for the
set at 6-5 Federer conjured some magic to get himself out of trouble
before dominating the tiebreak.
After a rain stoppage, and further treatment at the end
of the third set, Federer found some fluency to set up a quarter-final
against Mikhail Youzhny, the only other man to finish a singles match on
Monday.
"Honestly I'm not too worried," said Federer who is
chasing a record-equalling seventh title. "I've had bad backs over the
years. They go as quick as they come."
