Pironkova stuns Venus in quarters

Wimbledon Championships
Venue: All England Club, London Date: 21 June - 4 July
Coverage: Live on BBC One and Two, HD, Red Button, BBC Sport website (UK only), Radio 5 live, 5 live sports extra; live text commentary online and on mobile phones. Full details of BBC coverage

Pironkova too quick for Venus

By Ian Westbrook BBC Sport at Wimbledon

Tsvetana Pironkova produced a brilliant display to shock second seed Venus Williams in the quarter-finals.

The unseeded Bulgarian continually returned almost everything Williams threw at her and won 6-2 6-3.

The five-time champion was out of sorts and although she had two break points in the fifth game, Pironkova saved them and broke twice to win the first set.

The players swapped breaks early in the second but Pironkova broke again in the sixth game and closed out the match.

The 22-year-old played well but Williams had problems with her serve, twice serving consecutive double faults and several times throwing the ball up and then delaying before starting her service action again.

Court One was disappointingly only two-thirds full when the match started under grey skies.

Pironkova started confidently and wrapped up her first service game with a 111mph ace but Williams also had little trouble in her first service game, although she was hesitant before delivering her opening serve.

The Bulgarian produced a 114mph ace in her next service game which she held to 15 but as the sun briefly came out Williams also held - although a couple of rallies showed how fiercely Pironkova was returning.

The pivotal moments of the match arrived in the next two games.

In the fifth game the world number 82 started with a double fault and although Williams went long in the next rally, she dinked the ball over the net to win the next point and Pironkova netted in the next rally to give the American two break points.

606: DEBATE Can Pironkova go on to win the title?

As spots of rain started to fall, Pironkova held her nerve in two more rallies which saw Williams go long and then net - and her chance of an advantage had vanished.

The underdog held serve and in the next game produced some brilliant tennis from 40-15 down to level at deuce. An advantage came and went for Williams, who then served a double fault before putting a shot in the tramlines to hand her opponent the break.

Pironkova held again to lead 5-2 and Williams was then in all sorts of trouble on her serve - amazingly putting five consecutive deliveries into the net before getting a second serve in but still losing the point.

That gave the Bulgarian three set-points but Williams showed why she has won this title so many times by winning the next three points, surviving a challenge on the first, to take it to deuce.

However Pironkova was not to be denied and after Venus put a forehand out, the unseeded player hit a brilliant passing shot to take the set in 38 minutes.

More to follow.

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