Saturday, June 27, 2009

Kuznetsova and Jankovic crash out

WIMBLEDON
Date: 22 June - 5 July
Coverage: BBC One, BBC Two, BBC HD, Red Button, website streaming (UK only) and text commentary, 5 Live, 5 Live Sports Extra, BBC iPlayer
Tennis on the BBC

Sabine Lisicki

Highlights - Kuznetsova stunned by Lisicki

Svetlana Kuznetsova and Jelena Jankovic were both shock casualties in the third round at Wimbledon on Saturday.

Fifth seed and French Open champion Kuznetsova was blown away 6-2 7-5 on her 24th birthday by the unseeded 19-year-old German Sabine Lisicki.

The hard-serving Lisicki broke the Russian five times and will play ninth seed Caroline Wozniacki in the last 16.

Jankovic, ranked sixth, was well beaten by 17-year-old American qualifier Melanie Oudin over three intense sets.

Oudin, world number 124 and making her first visit to Wimbledon, produced a stunning performance to upset Jankovic 6-7 (8-10) 7-5 6-2 to make the final 16.

606: DEBATE
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The 24-year-old Serb seemed to be heading for a routine victory when serving at 5-4 in the opener but then the game turned on its head.

The teenage American wasted three set points during a monumental tie-break, and despite losing it 10-8, Jankovic's game slowly crumbled with her movement increasingly restricted.

An injury and medical time-out lasting nearly 12 minutes suggested she had problems and Oudin took full advantage with her ferocious forehand to win a nervy second set.

Although the 2008 US Open runner-up exhibited occasional glimpses of her power-game, the lively American, the youngest player left in the draw, never stopped chasing.

After amazingly dominating Jankovic from the baseline, she flew through the third set to secure a fully-deserved victory to set up a clash with Polish 11th seed Agnieszka Radwanska.

A thrilled Oudin said: "I think I handled it really well. I was just thinking she was any other player and this was any other match at any other tournament, not like on the biggest stage at Wimbledon playing my first top 10 player.

Svetlana Kuznetsova
Not the greatest of birthday presents for Kuznetsova on Court One

"I knew I was right there with her every single point, so I knew I could do it if I just kept trying and kept fighting.

"I'm very excited right now. But I'm hoping there will be better days too."

Jankovic said she was not affected by the heat but could not recover from feeling ill during the match.

"The conditions were tough but that was not my problem," she said. "In the first set I felt really dizzy and felt like I was going to end up in the hospital. I started to shake and that I was losing my consciousness.

"I thought I was going to fall down or have to call the ambulance or leave the court but I came back and started to fell a little bit better.

"However I felt weak and did not have the power in the shots and I was not the same player.

"It was very difficult for me to play in the circumstances and it made me as well quite nervous. I tried my best but did not have enough energy to hit the shots and go after the shots."

Melanie Oudin

Highlights - Jankovic shocked by Oudin

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