Taiwan’s Lu Yen-hsun failed to repeat his giant-killing heroics at Wimbledon as the world No. 57 was thrashed 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 by French 19th seed Michael Llodra in the third round on Saturday.
Lu became the first Taiwanese male player to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final in London last year when he stunned three-time Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick in the fourth round.
That dramatic five-set victory also made Lu the first man from Asia to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final for 15 years.
Photo: EPA
The 27-year-old collected two more impressive Wimbledon scalps this year when he defeated world No. 31 Tommy Robredo in the first round and then eliminated 13th seed Viktor Troicki in the second round, but his bid to reach the last 16 again ended in disappointment as the left-handed Llodra cruised through in just 1 hour, 43 minutes on Court 14.
Lu was never in the match as Llodra, who dominated with his astute serve-and-volley game, served 19 aces to Lu’s three and hit 46 winners.
Lu told Central News Agency after the game that he was not able to find faults in the Frenchman’s game. Lu said he needs to work on his serve, noting that he double-faulted at key moments and saw his first serve percentage plunge to 59 percent in the third round, which was lower than he managed in the previous two matches.
Photo: CNA
Lu said he is aiming for the top 20 or even the top 10, a goal that keeps him motivated every day.
Following his loss, Lu will head to the US to prepare for the US Open. He said he would also prepare himself for next year’s Olympic Games, as the tennis competition will be held on the grass courts of Wimbledon, which will give him a better chance of winning, as he fares better on grass.
Several Taiwanese fans watched Lu’s match, among them Katharine Chang, Taiwan’s representative to the UK, as well as Taiwanese studying in the UK.
Photo: AFP
Meanwhile, the mercury was rising on the show courts as the serial trophy hunters gathered in the last 16, with defending champions Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams leading the charge, and Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic not far behind.
Australian qualifier Bernard Tomic added a new face to the second week of a Grand Slam when he produced the biggest shock of the men’s tournament by beating Swedish fifth seed Robin Soderling in straight sets.
Nadal was in miserly mood as he finished off Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/5), 6-0 on Court One.
Photo: AFP
Williams, seeded seventh after her return from 11 months of serious health problems, made her most emphatic statement yet by blasting Russia’s Maria Kirilenko 6-3, 6-2.
“I was a little more consistent and I played my game more,” Williams said. “Wasn’t as tight and nervous and uptight. I was able to relax more today.”
Maria Sharapova, the 2004 winner, took her customary place at the business end of a major as the fifth seed overpowered Klara Zakopalova of the Czech Republic 6-2, 6-3 on Court Two.
The scheduling of the top women’s players on what is the club’s third court has been a bone of contention this week after Serena Williams, five-time winner Venus Williams and world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki have all made their way through the walkways to the sunken bowl.
Wozniacki, still waiting to join the elite club of Grand Slam champions, enjoyed her upgrade on Centre Court for an easy win over 27th-seed Jarmila Gajdosova.
She then made way for the club’s most decorated member to strut his stuff in the sunshine.
Swiss maestro Federer, his eyes fixed on Pete Sampras’ record seven Wimbledon men’s titles, produced another masterclass to dismantle David Nalbandian 6-4, 6-2, 6-4, despite making a complete hash of a smash on his first match point.
The most absorbing action was saved to last, however, as Djokovic and smiling Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis produced a prime-time sizzler that had Centre Court fans roaring their approval.
Djokovic won 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a match full of sensational rallies and one of the best racket demolitions seen in the famous arena as the Serb second seed vented his frustration in the second set.
“I was hanging in there and fighting,” said Djokovic, who next faces Llodra in his bid for a first Wimbledon title. “Playing here [the] last five years, there were not many moments when I saw practically all the stadium on their feet. It was incredible.”
After a stop-start tournament so far, the 125th championships are now simmering nicely with all the ingredients in place for a tasty second week.
“Monday will be kind of cool when all the men play at the same time,” said 29-year-old third-seeded Federer, who faces Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny.
Nadal, who committed just three unforced errors against Muller and is yet to drop a set, had reason for caution as his last 16 opponent is 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro, who beat Frenchman Gilles Simon.
“I’m not lucky to play against del Potro in the round-of-16, but that’s what it is and I have to be playing my best tennis to try to win,” Nadal said.
Tomic, the youngest player in the men’s draw who is poised to end Lleyton Hewitt’s 11-year reign as Australian No. 1, won the first four games and twice French Open runner-up Soderling crumbled to a 6-1, 6-4, 7-5 defeat.
In the women’s draw, ninth seed Marion Bartoli said that throwing her parents out of court helped her fight back to beat Flavia Pennetta in a grueling third-round clash.
The excitable Frenchwoman, runner up at Wimbledon in 2007, lost the first set 7-5 and immediately gestured furiously for her mother and father, who is also her coach, to leave the viewing area on Court 14.
The move had the desired effect as she won the next two sets 6-4, 9-7 — the decider after she was 5-3 down — to set up a last-16 clash with holder Serena Williams.
“I was so tired and exhausted that really I had to express my emotions somehow,” she said when asked about the unusual development. “I needed to get that frustration out, so I showed it that way. I could have broken a racket or thrown a bag or something. I normally never act like that, but I felt at this point I had to get all this frustration out and start again.”
Bartoli, who saved three match points en route to beating Lourdes Dominguez Lino in the second round on Thursday, said there were no hard feelings when the family linked up afterwards.
“I saw them after the match and they understood completely,” she said. “It was not against them. It was just that we played a very long first set and I was exhausted, and I was tired and I was feeling worse and worse. My dad told me he watched on the TV and he said it was the best match he ever saw me play at Wimbledon.”
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