Marat Safin's newfound confidence on grass faded fast Friday.
The big Russian came up short in his bid for a second Grand Slam title this year, losing to Spain's Feliciano Lopez 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-3 in the third round at Wimbledon.
Safin, who threatened to stop trying at Wimbledon after losing in the first round last year, entered this year's tournament upbeat and easily won his first two matches. But he was outserved by Lopez and quickly became so frustrated he launched a ball onto the Court 1 roof in anger, prompting a warning from the chair umpire.
"I just couldn't really find my game," said Safin, the Australian Open champion. "He's a tough player. What do you want me to do? I can't play my best tennis every day. I didn't really play bad."
No. 2-seeded Andy Roddick needed two days and five sets to beat Daniele Bracciali 7-5, 6-3, 6-7 (3), 4-6, 6-3. The second-round match was halted Thursday after three sets because of darkness, and again for 33 minutes Friday because of the tournament's first rain delay.
Roddick, who hit 23 aces and was broken just once in 26 service games, had lost his past five five-set matches.
"It felt good to be on the winning side of one," he said. "I was worried there for a while, so it was a lot of relief there in the end."
Roddick is scheduled to play Igor Andreev in the third round Saturday.
No. 3-seeded Lleyton Hewitt had American Justin Gimelstob diving all over the Centre Court lawn in vain pursuit of shots and won 7-6 (5), 6-4, 7-5. Hewitt, the 2002 champion, advanced to the fourth round against another American, No. 24 Taylor Dent, who beat Tomas Berdych 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3.
In women's third-round play, US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova was pushed to three sets for the second straight match but beat 16-year-old Nicole Vaidisova 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-2.
Kuznetsova's next opponent will be unseeded Magdalena Maleeva, who reached the fourth round in the tournament for the fourth time in five years by defeating Antonella Serra Zanetti 6-3, 6-2.
Two-time Wimbledon semifinalist Amelie Mauresmo, seeded third, eliminated American Shenay Perry 6-0, 6-2. Mauresmo has lost just 11 games in three matches.
"I really am enjoying to play on this surface," Mauresmo said. "So we'll see where it takes me."
No. 9 Anastasia Myskina rallied from a 5-1 deficit in the third set to beat No. 17 Jelena Jankovic 6-0, 5-7, 10-8. Myskina failed to convert two match points in the second set and squandered 24 of 33 break-point chances but still won in 2 hours, 43 minutes.
She'll next play Russian compatriot Elena Dementieva, a two-time Grand Slam runner-up, who beat American Mashona Washington 7-5, 6-1.
The third round began with a fifth consecutive day of warm sunshine, but rain moved in during the late afternoon and twice delayed matches. The second delay forced the suspension of one match until Saturday and the postponement of four others.
The Court 1 crowd watching Lopez's victory included his doubles partner, French Open champion Rafael Nadal. While Nadal lost in the second round, Lopez advanced to the round of 16 for the third time in four tries.
A left-hander seeded 26th, Lopez never lost serve and closed the victory with his 14th ace.
"My game is a little bit different than the other Spanish players, no?" Lopez said. "I go more to the net. I try to come in. I like to play also on clay, but for sure my game for grass I think is better."
RSS