Thu Jun 26 13:28:12 2008

Comment | Email | Print

Sharapova shocked in second round at Wimbledon

---

Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - The biggest upset to this point at Wimbledon 2008 came on Thursday, when little-known Russian Alla Kudryavtseva stunned former world No. 1 Maria Sharapova in straight sets in the second round at the All England Club.

Meanwhile, second-seeded Serb Jelena Jankovic and reigning champion and four- time winner Venus Williams posted victories, while former champ Lindsay Davenport pulled out here on Day 4.

The 154th-ranked Kudryavtseva, playing in only her third career Wimbledon match, sent her third-seeded fellow Russian Sharapova packing in 6-2, 6-4 fashion on Court 1.

The 20-year-old Kudryavtseva cruised in the first set against an off Sharapova and then grabbed a 4-2 lead in the second by breaking Sharapova for the fourth time in five tries.

But Sharapova fought back with a break and a hold to level the second at 4- all, only to see Kudryavtseva come right back with a hold and a break to hand Sharapova her earliest Grand Slam exit since a second-round one at the 2003 U.S. Open. Kudryavtseva converted on her first match point by scalding a final forehand winner.

Kudryavtseva, who's only 6-8 at the WTA Tour level this season, pulled off the stunner in 1 hour, 24 minutes, as Sharapova piled up eight double faults and 22 unforced errors and had her big serve broken five times.

Sharapova, who was No. 1 in the world as recently as three weeks ago, is the reigning Australian Open champion and captured the first of her three career Grand Slam titles right here at Wimbledon four years ago.

Jankovic pasted Carla Suarez Navarro for the second time in two Grand Slam events, as the Serbian star dismissed the Spaniard 6-1, 6-3. Jankovic also handled Suarez Navarro in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros earlier this month.

Up next for the sweet-swinging Jankovic will be Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki.

A seventh-seeded Williams got past Britain's Anne Keothavong 7-5, 6-2 on Centre Court. Keothavong pushed Williams in the first set, but the powerful American ultimately got the opening stanza under her belt and then cruised in the second.

Williams needed 69 minutes to capture the first set and wound up advancing in 1 hour, 44 minutes. The American piled up six double faults and 26 unforced errors, but also broke Keothavong's serve four times, while only surrendering one break against.

The six-time Grand Slam champion Williams defeated France's Marion Bartoli in last year's Wimbledon finale and also titled here in 2000, 2001 and 2005. She was the runner-up to her fellow former world No. 1 and younger sister Serena in 2002 and 2003.

Up next for Venus will be Spaniard Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez.

Davenport was forced to withdraw because of a nagging knee injury.

The 1999 champion at the All England Club also withdrew from the Wimbledon tuneup in Eastbourne last week because of the problem, then survived a first- round match against Czech Renata Voracova with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 decision. The 32-year-old Davenport needed medical attention during Tuesday's encounter.

Gisela Dulko was scheduled to face Davenport on Thursday, but the walkover advanced the Argentine into the third round.

The former top-ranked Davenport had missed Wimbledon the past two years -- in 2006 because of injury and last year because she was pregnant with her first child. In addition to her title here in 1999, she was also the runner-up to Venus in 2000 and 2005.

Ninth-seeded Russian Dinara Safina continued her recent winning ways by dousing Taipei's Su-Wei Hsieh 6-3, 6-2. Safina was this month's French Open runner-up to Ana Ivanovic and titled in Berlin last month.

Red-hot Thai Tamarine Tanasugarn won her seventh straight match by upsetting 13th-seeded Russian Vera Zvonareva 7-6 ((12-10), 4-6, 6-3. The veteran Tanasugarn is fresh off her grass-court title in The Netherlands, where she stunned Safina in the final.

In other second-round action involving seeds, No. 24 Israeli Shahar Peer handled France's Emilie Loit 6-3, 6-4; a No. 31 Wozniacki waltzed past Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak 6-1, 6-1; and the aforementioned Martinez Sanchez outlasted 32nd-seeded Indian Sania Mirza 6-0, 4-6, 9-7.