Defending champion Novak Djokovic on Wednesday reached the third round at Wimbledon for the 16th time, while Andy Murray suffered his earliest-ever exit at the All England Club.
Top seed Djokovic brushed aside 79th-ranked Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 and faces Serbian compatriot Miomir Kecmanovic for a last-16 place.
“I’m very happy with my performance. I started very well, solid from the back of the court,” said Djokovic, who is looking to join Pete Sampras as a seven-time Wimbledon champion. “I made him work for every point and worked him around the court.”
Photo: EPA-EFE
Kokkinakis had likened Djokovic to a “brick wall” before the match.
“It was one-way traffic. I got chopped today,” the 26-year-old Australian said after his Centre Court torment.
Former world No. 1 Murray, the 2013 and 2016 champion, went down 6-4, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (3/7), 6-4 to big-serving John Isner in his second-round clash.
Photo: AFP
Murray, now 52nd in the rankings, failed to break serve once against 2018 semi-finalist Isner, who unleashed 36 aces and 82 winners in total.
“He didn’t give me lots of chances,” said Murray, whose previous earliest exits came in the third round in 2005 and last year. “My game was in a good place. I felt good on the court, just couldn’t get the win.”
Isner, 37, was gracious in the aftermath of his first win in nine meetings against the Briton.
“I am most definitely not a better tennis player than Andy Murray. I might have been a little bit better than him today,” the American said.
Isner also took his career aces total to 13,724 to sit just four behind the record held by Ivo Karlovic.
Third seed and French Open runner-up Casper Ruud, who was scheduled to face Djokovic in the semi-finals, was knocked out by 112th-ranked Ugo Humbert, 3-6, 6-2, 7-5, 6-4.
Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz stayed on course to meet the six-time champion in the last eight by reaching the third round for the first time.
Alcaraz, 19, triumphed over Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands, 6-4, 7-6 (7/0), 6-3.
The flamboyant Spanish shot-maker faces Germany’s Oscar Otte for a place in the last 16.
Otte needed just 15 minutes to reach the third round when American opponent Christian Harrison retired injured at 3-1 down in their second-round tie.
Alcaraz’s compatriot Alejandro Fokina had a controversial exit at the hands of Jiri Vesely.
At match point down in the final set tiebreak, Fokina hit a ball out of the court, was penalized a point and lost the tie.
“I don’t agree with it. That’s crazy ... what a lousy way to end it,” US tennis great John McEnroe told ESPN.
In the women’s tournament, second seed Anett Kontaveit, ninth seed and former champion Garbine Muguruza as well as 10th-seeded US Open winner Emma Raducanu all exited.
Kontaveit lost 6-4, 6-0 to Germany’s Julie Niemeier, Muguruza lost her delayed first-round clash 6-4, 6-0 to Belgium’s Greet Minnen and Raducanu, bidding to become Britain’s first female champion at the All England Club in 45 years, was beaten 6-3, 6-3 by France’s 55th-ranked Caroline Garcia.
There were no such dramas for third seed Ons Jabeur or fifth-seeded Maria Sakkari, who went through to the last 32 in straight sets.
Lesia Tsurenko came out on top in three sets over Ukrainian compatriot Anhelina Kalinina to make the third round for the second time.
Tsurenko, ranked No. 101, proudly wore a ribbon in the colors of Ukraine on her shirt.
“It was a big court. Two Ukrainian players, but a lot of people were watching us. We felt amazing support,” Tsurenko said after her 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win.
“Today on the way from hotel to the club, we got a driver,” she said. “She has taken two people from Ukraine into her house. I think it’s amazing when people help Ukrainians so much.”
In the first round of the women’s doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and her Japanese partner Shuko Aoyama defeated Chinese pair Wang Xiyu and Zheng Qinwen 7-5, 6-3.
Chan and Aoyama today face Maia Lumsden and Naiktha Bains in the second round after the Britons beat Jasmine Paolini and Martina Trevisan of Italy, 6-1, 7-5.
Chan’s sister, Latisha Chan, was to play alongside partner Samantha Stosur of Australia after press time last night against Spain’s Aliona Bolsova and Ingrid Neel of the US.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Japan’s Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball “superhuman” following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to US sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady. Not since Ruth a century ago has there been a baseball player capable of both pitching and hitting at the top level. The 30-year-old’s performances with the Los Angeles Dodgers have consolidated his position as a baseball legend in the making, and a national icon in his native Japan. He continues to find new ways to amaze, this year becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
Francesco Bagnaia yesterday profited from a mistake by rookie Pedro Acosta to win the Japan MotoGP sprint and close the gap on overall championship leader, Jorge Martin. Spaniard Acosta crashed with four laps to go while leading the field at Motegi, allowing defending world champion Bagnaia to take first ahead of Enea Bastianini and Marc Marquez. Spain’s Martin finished fourth and saw his overall lead over Italian Bagnaia in the championship standings cut to 15 points. “I am very happy because with these conditions, it’s not very easy to win and gain points,” Bagnaia said after a sprint race that took place under
RSS