Most Viewed Stories
Wimbledon Capsules: Williams sisters, Wozniacki all lose at Wimbledon
At a glance
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — A look at Wimbledon on Monday:
Weather: Partly cloudy. High of 34 degrees C (93 degrees F).
Attendance: 44,494.
Men’s Seeded Winners: No. 1 Rafael Nadal, No. 2 Novak Djokovic, No. 3 Roger Federer, No. 4 Andy Murray, No. 10 Mardy Fish, No. 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Men’s Seeded Losers: No. 6 Tomas Berdych, No. 7 David Ferrer, No. 17 Richard Gasquet, No. 18 Mikhail Youzhny, No. 19 Michael Llodra, No. 24 Juan Martin del Potro.
Women’s Seeded Winners: No. 4 Victoria Azarenka, No. 5 Maria Sharapova, No. 8 Petra Kvitova, No. 9 Marion Bartoli, No. 24 Dominika Cibulkova, No. 32 Tsvetana Pironkova.
Women’s Seeded Losers: No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki, No. 7 Serena Williams, No. 19 Yanina Wickmayer, No. 20 Peng Shuai, No. 23 Venus Williams.
Stat of the Day: 8 — European countries represented in women’s quarterfinals. It is the first time since 1913 that all eight quarterfinalists in the women’s tournament have been European.
Quote of the Day: "I don’t even remember her playing her before. They said she lost to her here a year ago. I didn’t remember the girl. I’ll remember her this time." — Oracene Price, mother of the Williams sisters after Venus lost to Tsvetana Pironkova 6-2, 6-3 for the second year in a row.
On Court Tuesday: Sabine Lisicki vs. No. 9 Marion Bartoli, No. 24 Dominika Cibulkova vs. No. 5 Maria Sharapova, No. 8 Petra Kvitova vs. No. 32 Tsvetana Pironkova, Tamira Paszek vs. No. 4 Victoria Azarenka.
Tuesday’s Forecast: Mainly cloudy with a chance of showers. High of 22 degrees C (72 degrees F).
Show Court Schedules
The Associated Press
Tuesday
At The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club
Wimbledon, England
Play begins 8 a.m. EDT
Centre Court
Sabine Lisicki, Germany, vs. Marion Bartoli (9), France
Dominika Cibulkova (24), Slovakia, vs. Maria Sharapova (5), Russia
Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza (6), India, vs. Jamie Murray, Britain, and Jarmila Gajdosova, Australia
No. 1 Court
Petra Kvitova (8), Czech Republic, vs. Tsvetana Pironkova (32), Bulgaria
Tamira Paszek, Austria, vs. Victoria Azarenka (4), Belarus
Bob Bryan and Liezel Huber (1), United States, vs. Feliciano Lopez, Spain, and Andrea Petkovic, Germany
Results
The Associated Press
Monday
At The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club
Wimbledon, England
Purse: $23.6 million (Grand Slam)
Surface: Grass-Outdoor
Singles
Men
Fourth Round
Bernard Tomic, Australia, def. Xavier Malisse, Belgium, 6-1, 7-5, 6-4.
Andy Murray (4), Britain, def. Richard Gasquet (17), France, 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-2.
Novak Djokovic (2), Serbia, def. Michael Llodra (19), France, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Feliciano Lopez, Spain, def. Lukasz Kubot, Poland, 3-6, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (7), 7-5, 7-5.
Mardy Fish (10), United States, def. Tomas Berdych (6), Czech Republic, 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-4.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (12), France, def. David Ferrer (7), Spain, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (1).
Roger Federer (3), Switzerland, def. Mikhail Youzhny (18), Russia, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Rafael Nadal (1), Spain, def. Juan Martin del Potro (24), Argentina, 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4.
Women
Fourth Round
Maria Sharapova (5), Russia, def. Peng Shuai (20), China, 6-4, 6-2.
Victoria Azarenka (4), Belarus, def. Nadia Petrova, Russia, 6-2, 6-2.
Sabine Lisicki, Germany, def. Petra Cetkovska, Czech Republic, 7-6 (3), 6-1.
Tamira Paszek, Austria, def. Ksenia Pervak, Russia, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3.
Petra Kvitova (8), Czech Republic, def. Yanina Wickmayer (19), Belgium, 6-0, 6-2.
Marion Bartoli (9), France, def. Serena Williams (7), United States, 6-3, 7-6 (6).
Dominika Cibulkova (24), Slovakia, def. Caroline Wozniacki (1), Denmark, 1-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5.
Tsvetana Pironkova (32), Bulgaria, def. Venus Williams (23), United States, 6-2, 6-3.
Doubles
Men
First Round
Jurgen Melzer, Austria, and Philipp Petzschner (5), Germany, def. Ryan Harrison and Travis Rettenmaier, United States, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (1), 6-4.
Second Round
Ashley Fisher and Stephen Huss, Australia, def. Eric Butorac, United States, and Jean-Julien Rojer (9), Netherlands Antilles, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3.
Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins, Britain, def. Grigor Dimitrov, Bulgaria, and Dmitry Tursunov, Russia, 4-6, 6-2, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4.
Bob and Mike Bryan (1), United States, def. Alex Bogomolov Jr., United States, and Ivo Karlovic, Croatia, 7-6 (4), 6-4, 7-5.
Carsten Ball, Australia, and Santiago Gonzalez, Mexico, def. Chris Guccione, Australia, and Adil Shamasdin, Canada, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (6), 6-4.
Michael Llodra, France, and Nenad Zimonjic (6), Serbia, def. Somdev Devvarman, India, and Kei Nishikori, Japan, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (5).
Third Round
Robert Lindstedt, Sweden, and Horia Tecau (8), Romania, def. Juan Ignacio Chela and Eduardo Schwank (12), Argentina, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (2), 7-6 (8).
Christopher Kas, Germany, and Alexander Peya, Austria, def. Kevin Anderson, South Africa, and Julian Knowle, Austria, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (1), 6-4, 5-7, 8-6.
Arnaud Clement, France, and Lukas Dlouhy, Czech Republic, def. Marcel Granollers and Tommy Robredo (14), Spain, 6-3, 7-5, 7-5.
Women
Second Round
Nuria Llagostera Vives and Arantxa Parra Santonja, Spain, def. Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Meghann Shaughnessy (5), United States, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Angelique Kerber, Germany, and Christina McHale, United States, def. Olga Govortsova, Belarus, and Alla Kudryavtseva (16), Russia, 2-6, 6-2, 6-1.
Cara Black, Zimbabwe, and Shahar Peer (14), Israel, def. Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears, United States, 6-2, 6-3.
Sabine Lisicki, Germany, and Sam Stosur, Australia, def. Vania King, United States, and Yaroslava Shvedova (1), Kazakhstan, 6-4, 6-3.
Daniela Hantuchova, Slovakia, and Agnieszka Radwanska (13), Poland, def. Natalie Grandin, South Africa, and Vladimira Uhlirova, Czech Republic, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.
Kimiko Date-Krumm, Japan, and Zhang Shuai, China, def. Chan Yung-jan, Taiwan, and Monica Niculescu (12), Romania, 6-2, 6-4.
Sorana Cirstea, Romania, and Ayumi Morita, Japan, def. Sophie Lefevre, France, and Evgeniya Rodina, Russia, 7-5, 6-3.
Peng Shuai and Zheng Jie (8), China, def. Mariya Koryttseva, Ukraine, and Tatiana Poutchek, Belarus, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-0.
Nadia Petrova, Russia, and Anastasia Rodionova (6), Australia, def. Ana Ivanovic, Serbia, and Andrea Petkovic, Germany, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci, Italy, def. Tsvetana Pironkova, Bulgaria, and Chanelle Scheepers, South Africa, 6-3, 6-1.<
Third Round
Marina Erakovic, New Zealand, and Tamarine Tanasugarn, Thailand, def. Iveta Benesova and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (10), Czech Republic, 6-2, 6-1.
Mixed
First Round
Jamie Murray, Britain, and Jarmila Gajdosova, Australia, def. Igor Andreev and Maria Kirilenko, Russia, 7-6 (6), 6-3.
Second Round
Andy Ram, Israel, and Meghann Shaughnessy (15), United States, def. Ken Skupski and Elena Baltacha, Britain, 6-4, 6-4.
Jurgen Melzer, Austria, and Iveta Benesova (9), Czech Republic, def. Andreas Seppi and Alberta Brianti, Italy, 6-4, 6-3.
Eric Butorac, United States, and Olga Govortsova, Belarus, def. Frantisek Cermak and Lucie Hradecka (13), Czech Republic, 6-2, 6-1.
Leander Paes, India, and Cara Black (14), Zimbabwe, def. Rogier Wassen, Netherlands, and Alicja Rosolska, Poland, 6-1, 6-4.
Jonathan Erlich and Shahar Peer, Israel, def. Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi, Pakistan, and Kveta Peschke (5), Czech Republic, 6-3, 6-1.
Daniel Nestor, Canada, and Chan Yung-jan (8), Taiwan, def. Ashley Fisher, Australia, and Natalie Grandin, South Africa, 6-2, 6-3.
Rajeev Ram, United States, and Alexandra Dulgheru, Romania, def. Philipp Petzschner, Germany, and Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (7), Czech Republic, 6-2, 7-5.
Feliciano Lopez, Spain, and Andrea Petkovic, Germany, def. David Marrero, Spain, and Andrea Hlavackova (16), Czech Republic, 7-6 (2), 6-4.
Mahesh Bhupathi, India, and Elena Vesnina (4), Russia, def. Stephen Huss and Anastasia Rodionova, Australia, 6-2, 7-6 (3).
Eduardo Schwank, Argentina, and Alla Kudryavtseva, Russia, vs. Martin Damm and Renata Voracova, Czech Republic, 7-6 (3), 6-7 (5), susp., darkness.
Junior Singles
First Round
Jiri Vesely (1), Czech Republic, def. Jonathan Cornish, Britain, 6-4, 6-2.
Kyle Edmund, Britain, def. Joao Pedro Sorgi (11), Brazil, 6-3, 6-3.
Filip Horansky (5), Slovakia, def. Oriol Roca Batalla, Spain, 6-4, 7-6 (3).
Evan Hoyt, Britain, def. Axel Alvarez Llamas, Spain, 6-3, 6-4.
Ben Wagland, Australia, def. Shane Vinsant, United States, 6-3, 4-6, 8-6.
Hassan Ndayishimiye, Burundi, def. Matias Sborowitz, Chile, 6-4, 6-4.
Roberto Carballes Baena (6), Spain, def. Andrew Bettles, Britain, 6-3, 6-4.
Kimmer Coppejans, Belgium, def. Toby Martin, Britain, 6-4, 6-4.
Dominic Thiem (7), Austria, def. Diego Hidalgo, Ecuador, 6-2, 6-1.
Thiago Moura Monteiro (2), Brazil, def. Dennis Novak, Austria, 6-3, 1-6, 15-13.
Oliver Golding (4), Britain, def. Aslan Karatsev, Russia, 4-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4.
Robin Kern, Germany, def. Jannick Lupescu, Netherlands, 6-1, 6-2.
Evgeny Karlovskiy, Russia, def. Dennis Novikov, United States, 7-5, 6-4.
Andrew Whittington (9), Australia, def. Luke Bambridge, Britain, 7-6 (4), 6-3.
George Morgan (10), Britain, def. Teodor Nicolae Marin, Romania, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
Liam Broady (15), Britain, def. Nick Kyrgios, Australia, 6-3, 6-7 (3), 6-2.
Sean Berman, United States, def. Enzo Couacaud, France, 7-6 (4), 6-2.
Girls
First Round
Eugenie Bouchard (5), Canada, def. Megane Bianco, Switzerland, 6-4, 6-2.
Francesca Stephenson, Britain, def. Makoto Ninomiya, Japan, 6-4, 6-2.
Anett Kontaveit (13), Estonia, def. Mayya Katsitadze, Russia, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.
Barbora Krejcikova, Czech Republic, def. Christina Makarova, United States, 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-4.
Caroline Garcia (2), France, def. Tereza Smitkova, Czech Republic, 6-2, 6-4.
Montserrat Gonzalez (6), Paraguay, def. Katie Boulter, Britain, 6-4, 6-2.
Yulia Putintseva (7), Russia, def. Elena-Teodora Cadar, Romania, 6-1, 6-1.
Ashleigh Barty (12), Australia, def. Lucy Brown, Britain, 6-3, 6-4.
Catherine Harrison, United States, def. Marie Elise Casares, Ecuador, 6-2, 7-6 (7).
Katharina Lehnert, Germany, def. Klara Fabikova, Czech Republic, 6-0, 7-5.
Victoria Duval (16), United States, def. Miyu Kato, Japan, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.
Nao Hibino, Japan, def. Katy Dunne, Britain, 6-2, 7-6 (5).
Beatriz Haddad Maia, Brazil, def. Laura Deigman, Britain, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Ruth Seaborne, Britain, def. Gabrielle Faith Andrews, United States, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Belarus, def. Viktoria Malova (14), Slovakia, 6-2, 6-1.
Irina Khromacheva (3), Russia, def. Stephanie Wagner, Germany, 6-3, 6-2.
Indy De Vroome, Netherlands, def. Ganna Poznikhirenko, Ukraine, 7-5, 7-6 (5).
Risa Ozaki, Japan, def. Ons Jabeur (4), Tunisia, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Junior Doubles
Boys
First Round
Robin Kern and Julian Lenz, Germany, def. Marcos Giron and Alexios Halebian, United States, 6-4, 7-6 (7).
Julien Cagnina and Joris De Loore, Belgium, def. Kimmer Coppejans, Belgium, and Filip Peliwo, Canada, 6-4, 6-2.
Girls
First Round
Mami Adachi and Riko Sawayanagi, Japan, def. Elizaveta Anna Nemchinov, United States, and Taisiya Zakarlyuk, Ukraine, 6-2, 6-0.
Demi Schuurs, Netherlands, and Tang Hao Chen, China, def. Lucia Butkovska, Slovakia, and Jovana Jaksic, Serbia, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Walking away from Centre Court, Oracene Price — mother and sometimes-coach to Serena and Venus Williams — shook her head after watching one daughter lose at Wimbledon, then the other.
Undeniably great as she is, even defending champion Serena found it too tough to make a deep run at her first Grand Slam tournament in a year after a series of health scares. And as successful as Venus has been at the All England Club, even she couldn't muster her best after missing nearly five months with a hip injury.
"I don't think their layoffs helped their rhythm," Price said. "They both seemed to be making the same kinds of mistakes. They were hit-and-miss, here and there."
They're both headed home after straight-set exits in the fourth round against far-less-accomplished opponents Monday. First, 13-time major champion Serena lost 6-3, 7-6 (6) to ninth-seeded Marion Bartoli on Court 1. Then, less than two hours later and before a Centre Court crowd that included Prince William and his new bride, Kate, five-time Wimbledon champion Venus was beaten 6-2, 6-3 by 32nd-seeded Tsvetana Pironkova.
Adding to the chaotic nature of the afternoon, top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki lost, too, although she's still searching for her first Grand Slam singles trophy, whereas the Williams sisters own a total of 20.
"Definitely not our best day," Venus said. "I think we both envisioned seeing this day going a little bit different."
And why shouldn't they have? After all, Venus and her younger sister combined to win nine of the past 11 Wimbledon titles, including Serena's victories in 2009 and 2010. They even played each other in four of the finals in that span.
"Well, I never came here thinking I would lose," said Serena, a former No. 1 whose ranking now will plummet to about 175th. "That's my attitude."
It's the first time since 2006 that neither Williams is in the Wimbledon quarterfinals; Venus lost in the third round that year, while Serena skipped that tournament because of a left knee injury. Of the 12 years that both entered the field at the All England Club, this is the first neither one made it past the fourth round.
"Obviously, it's not something planned," Venus said. "We rarely lose on the same day."
That's true: They last lost on the same day at a Grand Slam tournament on May 30, 2008, in the French Open's third round.
All in all, it was a topsy-turvy day at the All England Club. Set aside, for a moment, what went on with the Williams sisters, and digest Monday's various other happenings:
— Wozniacki still has yet to make it past the fourth round at Wimbledon after a 1-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5 defeat against No. 24 Dominika Cibulkova;
— defending champion and top-seeded Rafael Nadal initially thought he broke his left foot and might have to quit late in the first set, then lost the second set, but eventually beat 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4;
— six-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer dropped his first set of the fortnight — against a man he was 10-0 against, no less — before righting himself to reach a 29th consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal;
— 18-year-old Bernard Tomic of Australia became the youngest man in the Wimbledon quarterfinals since 1986, when Boris Becker went on to win his second title in a row;
— 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych went out in straight sets against 10th-seeded Mardy Fish, who never before reached the quarterfinals at the All England Club but now is the last American, man or woman, left in the tournament.
"Last. ... Not what you set out to do," said Fish, who is 0-5 against Nadal heading into their quarterfinal. "It was, I guess, bad luck for the Williams sisters to lose. Unfortunate, I guess. They'll be back, I'm sure."
They won't be around for the women's quarterfinals Tuesday, which are: Cibulkova of Slovakia vs. No. 5 Maria Sharapova of Russia; Bartoli of France vs. wild-card entry Sabine Lisicki of Germany; No. 8 Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic vs. Pironkova of Bulgaria; and No. 4 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus vs. Tamira Paszek of Austria. It's the first time since 1913 that the last eight women at Wimbledon are from Europe — and, as it happens, eight countries are represented.
Sharapova is the only quarterfinalist who's won a Grand Slam title; her three major championships include Wimbledon in 2004.
After a day off, the men play their quarterfinals Wednesday. In addition to Nadal vs. Fish — assuming Nadal decides to play after getting an MRI exam on his foot — the matchups are No. 2 Novak Djokovic vs. Tomic; No. 3 Federer vs. No. 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga; and No. 4 Murray vs. unseeded Feliciano Lopez.
"I'm worried, for sure," Nadal said.
Neither of the women who beat the Williams sisters Monday has won a Grand Slam title, although Bartoli did reach the Wimbledon final in 2007 — before losing to Venus. Pironkova, meanwhile, produced her best Grand Slam showing at the All England Club a year ago, when she made it to the semifinals by beating Venus — coincidentally, also by the score of 6-2, 6-3.
Pironkova also beat Venus at the 2006 Australian Open, yet somehow she clearly didn't make much of an impression on Mom.
"I don't even remember her playing her before. They said she lost to her here a year ago," Price said. "I didn't remember the girl. I'll remember her this time."
As well she should, because Pironkova befuddles the older Williams sister. On Monday, Pironkova played steadily, making only 10 unforced errors, half as many as Venus.
"Today's match probably looked easier on the outside, but it took me enormous amount of power to beat her," Pironkova said. "I kept pushing her. As I said, I played well. So she probably got a little shaky, and I took over."
Pironkova was 4-14 at tour-level events before her 4-0 run so far at Wimbledon.
Apparently, her game takes on a whole new depth on grass courts — and against Venus.
"It's kind of inexplicable why I manage to play some of my worst tennis against her," Venus said. "It's not like I'm intimidated at all by anybody on tour."
Perhaps, though, players are not as intimidated as they once were when facing a Williams.
Against Serena, Bartoli never backed down. Indeed, she took a page directly out of the sisters' playbook, moving a few feet inside the baseline to receive serves.
Serena insisted afterward she never noticed that, nor was she bothered by any of Bartoli's many eccentricities: gripping her racket with two hands for forehands and backhands; hopping on the balls of her feet between points; taking full-cut swings between points; swaying left and right before getting ready to return serves.
"It's a bit 'special,'" Bartoli said, making air quotes with her fingers. "But it's the way ... I'm feeling comfortable."
Over and over Monday, she'd whip deep groundstrokes to a corner, putting Serena on the defensive. Bartoli also served quite well, finishing with 10 aces and ending the match with a 103 mph service winner.
She's on a superb run right now.
In her three tournaments prior to Wimbledon, she reached the final at Strasbourg and the semifinals at the French Open on clay, then won the title at Eastbourne on grass.
"She should always play like this, and she would be in the top five, at minimum," Serena said. "It's like, 'Wow, where is this player throughout the rest of the year?'"
That Serena herself was at Wimbledon at all — and in the fourth round, to boot — was a testament to her skill and will.
Days after winning the title at the All England Club in 2010, she cut both feet on glass at a restaurant. She eventually had two operations on her right foot, then was hospitalized for clots in her lungs, then a gathering of blood under the skin of her stomach.
"I think I did really well, just being able to come back and play and win some matches and just really play tough. Even today I lost, but I was able to kind of hang in there," Serena said. "And I can only get better. And that can potentially be really scary, because I can only go up from here."
Worried Nadal to get MRI on injured left foot
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Rafael Nadal felt something "crush" in his left foot, and the intense pain immediately made him worry that it might be broken.
And then, as he limped along between first-set points in the fourth round at Wimbledon, came an idea just as scary to contemplate: What if he needed to quit?
"I thought I wouldn’t be able to continue playing," the defending champion and top-seeded Nadal said Monday night. "That’s the truth. I’m not lying."
After pulling out a 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro, Nadal said he would get an MRI exam on the foot and couldn’t be 100 percent sure how fit he’ll be for his quarterfinal Wednesday against 10th-seeded Mardy Fish of the United States.
"I’m worried, for sure. I’m going to do the MRI. We’ll see what’s going on. Tomorrow, we will see," Nadal said. "I cannot predict the future."
By getting past del Potro, Nadal improved to 30-2 at Wimbledon since the start of the 2006 tournament. He’s joined in the quarterfinals by the rest of the top four seeded men: No. 2 Novak Djokovic, No. 3 Roger Federer and No. 4 Andy Murray.
"We’ve all been playing well, I think the top four or five guys really, for a long time," said Federer, a six-time champion at Wimbledon. "I think it’s exciting for tennis."
He dropped a set for the first time in his four matches at Wimbledon this year before coming back to beat 18th-seeded Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 and reach the quarterfinals at a record 29th consecutive Grand Slam tournament.
Federer, now 11-0 against Youzhny, compiled 54 winners — including 14 aces — and broke six times.
Two-time Australian Open champion Djokovic kept up his bid for a first Wimbledon title by beating Michael Llodra of France 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. Djokovic can replace Nadal at No. 1 in the rankings by reaching Sunday’s final.
Murray, meanwhile, breezed past No. 17 Richard Gasquet of France 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-2 — then took a deep bow to the Royal Box, where Prince William and bride Kate joined the rest of the crowd in giving Britain’s top player a standing ovation.
Murray is hoping to become the first British man to win the title at the All England Club since Fred Perry in 1936. After Monday’s victory, Murray met with the royal couple, then sheepishly apologized to them for his appearance.
"If I’d known they were coming, I would have shaved," the Scot said with a smile. "I was thinking to myself as I came off I was sweaty and very hairy. I said to them, ‘I’m sorry, I’m a bit sweaty.’ But it was really nice."
In addition to Nadal-Fish, the quarterfinals will be Djokovic vs. 18-year-old qualifier Bernard Tomic of Australia, who beat Xavier Malisse of Belgium 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 to become the youngest man to make it this far at Wimbledon since Boris Becker won a second consecutive championship in 1986; Federer vs. No. 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France; and Murray vs. unseeded Feliciano Lopez of Spain.
Tsonga got past No. 7 David Ferrer of Spain 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (1), while Lopez came back from two sets down to eliminate Lukasz Kubot of Poland 3-6, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (7), 7-5, 7-5.
In the day’s most dramatic match, Nadal’s foot began hurting during the first set, particularly when he moved to his left to hit defensive forehands. He was visited twice by a trainer, including right before the tiebreaker, when his foot was taped up, which helped alleviate the problem a bit.
Still, Nadal fell behind 3-0 in the tiebreaker, favoring his left foot during points and stepping gingerly after them. Up in his guest box, Toni Nadal — Rafael’s uncle and coach — was gnawing on his finger nails.
Aided by mistakes from del Potro, Nadal won four consecutive points to go ahead 4-3, but then fell behind 6-5. Nadal saved that set point with a service winner, ended a 20-stroke exchange with a backhand that landed right on the baseline, and took the set when del Potro double-faulted.
Del Potro — who missed most of 2010 after right wrist surgery — won the second set, but then he tumbled to the turf early in the third, clutching at his left hip. He left to get checked by a trainer, but continued.
Despite both players’ health issues, they provided some scintillating tennis. Del Potro pressured Nadal with his powerful forehand and strong serve, often attacking the net. Nadal countered with a series of spectacular passing shots.
After Nadal served out the match at love, the crowd gave both players a lengthy standing ovation.
"I will try my best," Nadal said, "to be very competitive on Wednesday."
-- Howard Fendrich
Wozniacki still waiting for first Grand Slam title
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Starting to sound like a broken record, Caroline Wozniacki had to explain again why the top-ranked woman in tennis can’t win a Grand Slam title.
After coming up short Monday — wasting a one-set lead before losing 1-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5 to 24th-seeded Dominika Cibulkova in the fourth round at Wimbledon — it’s clear that the 20-year-old Dane is getting tired of justifying her credentials.
"To be honest, I don’t really care what people think or say or do," said Wozniacki, who has played in only one major final, losing to Kim Clijsters in the championship match at the 2009 U.S. Open. "You know, I cannot really do anything now. I did my best and it wasn’t good enough."
Wozniacki was the first to admit that she had herself to blame for failing to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time.
The Dane breezed through the first set in only 24 minutes, and was up a break in the third, leading 2-0. But she was broken three times the rest of the way in a seesaw decider, including going down 6-5. Cibulkova then served out the match, converting her third match point with a forehand winner.
"It’s kind of disappointing because when you’re up 2-love with a break and have a lot of break points that you don’t convert, that’s kind of your own fault," Wozniacki said. "I was there. I should have taken my chance."
Wozniacki became No. 1 in October, but isn’t the first top-ranked woman to struggle in Grand Slams. Dinara Safina and Jelena Jankovic never won a major title either, and many still see the Williams sisters as the top players in women’s tennis — although both Venus and Serena were also eliminated Monday after struggling with injuries.
"It’s not easy when you compare to Serena Williams, because she was the best player and she was just really tough to play. She had so many Grand Slam titles," Cibulkova said. "Caroline is now compared to the other No. 1s. She never won a Grand Slam, and that’s what they ask her all the time, when is she going to win a Grand Slam. But if I would be No. 1, you know, I’m No. 1. It’s also not easy to be there."
Cibulkova seemed to struggle with her nerves in the first set, when she was broken twice — double-faulting on break point each time.
But she found her rhythm in the second and dictated play on most long baseline rallies, repeatedly forcing the Dane from corner to corner on Court 2, where temperatures reached 93 degrees.
"That’s the way how you should play against Wozniacki because she’s just great," said Cibulkova, who will play Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals. "Today I had to take all or nothing. After the first set I realized, I have to go for my shots 100 percent or anyway I have no chance. That’s how I started to play, and I was really going for everything."
Wozniacki had to save two set points at 6-5 to force the tiebreaker, where she fell behind 6-4 after Cibulkova hit a forehand winner down the line.
The Slovakian finally converted her fourth set point with a strong forehand that Wozniacki lunged to reach, but only managed to loft long.
"She just goes for everything," Wozniacki said of the hard-hitting Cibulkova. "She doesn’t hold back. So if it goes in, it’s tough. But we had a lot of long rallies, a lot of good points, and unfortunately I didn’t win today."
Wozniacki will next play in the clay-court tournament in Bastad, Sweden. After that, she will take a break to get ready for the hard court season, and her next shot at a Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open. What she’ll be working on during that break, though, is still up in the air.
"I haven’t really thought about that yet," she said. "I was still hoping I was going to be in the tournament after today."
-- Mattias Karen
Teen Tomic reaches Wimbledon quarterfinals
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Not since Boris Becker has a man as young as Bernard Tomic graced the green grass of Wimbledon this far into the tournament.
Born in Germany with Croatian heritage and raised in Australia, Tomic is only 18 — and in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
"What a feeling and what a tournament it’s been for me," Tomic said after beating 2002 Wimbledon semifinalist Xavier Malisse 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 Monday in the fourth round. "I’m at a position now where I’ve never been happier. I’m looking forward to playing on Wednesday."
Tomic is only 29 days older than Becker was in 1986 when he won his second straight title at the All England Club. In the next round, he will face friend and mentor Novak Djokovic.
"Unbelievable achievement. I feel great. Great honor to do it here in Wimbledon," said Tomic, who eliminated two-time French Open runner-up Robin Soderling in the previous round. "I’m not going to stop now. I’m going to try my best to play on Wednesday in the quarters. I’ve got nothing to lose."
Against Malisse, Tomic had 37 winners and only eight unforced errors. He also beat the fifth-seeded Soderling in straight sets.
"Two different wins," Tomic said, comparing the last two victories. "But today I was playing for a big spot. In one way they’re both unbelievable achievements, but today was a win I really wanted and I prepared for well, and I played well for it today."
Tomic’s goal a few weeks ago was just to qualify, and he almost didn’t make it. The Australian teen, who lost in the first round last year in his Wimbledon debut, had to save a pair of break points at 4-4 in the deciding set against Sebastien Rieschick of Germany before getting through.
But since making the main draw, he has implemented a new game plan, playing more aggressive tennis. In juniors, he said he often relied on defensive tennis.
"That’s where players missed, as opposed to here. They don’t miss as much," Tomic said. "I found out, look, if I really want to play against these guys, I have to relax like I do in practice. That’s when I play my best tennis, in practice."
He’ll likely need his best tennis to continue in the tournament, especially against the one player on tour who knows his game the best — Djokovic.
The pair share a common language in Serbo-Croatian and have hit together several times since playing an exhibition match in Australia at the beginning of last year.
"He’s a cool guy. One of the nicest guys out there on the tour," Tomic said of the two-time Australian Open champion. "To play against a guy like him that’s (No.) 2 in the world, it doesn’t get really better than that."
When they do play, it will be for the second time this year at Wimbledon following a practice set before the tournament.
"He destroyed me," Tomic said, then smiled as he continued. "Things are not looking good for me, but hopefully he destroyed me then and not on this game on Wednesday."
-- Chris Lehourites
Royals William and Kate visit Wimbledon
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Andy Murray bowed majestically on Centre Court, then sheepishly apologized to his royal fans — Prince William and bride Kate — for his unkempt appearance.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge watched from the front row of the Royal Box on Monday as the fourth-seeded Murray beat Richard Gasquet to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon.
"If I'd known they were coming, I would have shaved," the British star said, smiling. "I was thinking to myself as I came off I was sweaty and very hairy. I said to them, 'I'm sorry, I'm a bit sweaty.'"
At least Murray had a well-practiced bow ready. Last year, he was watched by the Queen on her first visit to the tournament in 33 years and bowed low with one arm bent behind his back and one in front.
The players weren't obliged to bow for William and Kate. But after shaking hands with Gasquet, Murray waved to three sides of the Centre Court crowd before turning to the Royal Box and repeating his very proper bow as the couple stood and applauded.
"I hadn't planned on doing it before," Murray said after beating Gasquet 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-2. "When the Queen came to our match last year we were told she was coming and that we would bow when we went on and off the court.
"But today we weren't told anything, so it was just sort of off the cuff."
Murray said it was "very nice" to meet the couple, who he said told him: "Well done on the match. Asked me how it was out there. That was it. Wasn't a long conversation."
William and Kate later returned to Centre Court and saw Venus Williams and Rafael Nadal in action. The couple even joined in the wave during Nadal's match.
The visit wasn't announced in advance and wasn't part of their official royal duties. They arrived at about 12:30 p.m. and were given a warm ovation by the Centre Court crowd when they took their seats in the Royal Box 25 minutes later.
In keeping with Wimbledon's all-white dress theme, Kate wore an off-white, knee-length dress with tiered layers and embroidered straps. William wore a blue suit on a warm day in London, with temperatures about 86 degrees.
Security was noticeably tighter at the All England Club, and a police helicopter circled the grounds early on during the visit.
There seemed to be a royal theme at Wimbledon on Monday. Six-time Wimbledon champion Billie Jean King was sitting behind Prince William and Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, was also on the invitation list.
Later in the day, there was a visit from hip-hop royalty as Jay-Z watched Nadal play Juan Martin del Potro. Jay-Z had been expected to visit with his wife, Beyonce, but the pop singer was a no-show after headlining the Glastonbury music festival in southwest England on Sunday.
St. James's Palace said Kate is a tennis fan and has been to Wimbledon "quite a number of times." William visited Wimbledon several times as a child with his mother, Princess Diana.
William and Kate were married on April 29. They will begin their first overseas state visit since their wedding in Ottawa, Canada, on Thursday.
-- Caroline Cheese
Notebook: ’Different’ Fish reaches Wimbledon quarterfinals
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Mardy Fish is doing some things a little bit differently at Wimbledon this year — and chief among them is advancing to the quarterfinals for the first time.
The lone American remaining at the tournament made it that far Monday by beating 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-4, but things won’t get much easier against defending champion Rafael Nadal in the next round.
"Last, last," Fish said a few hours after both Serena and Venus Williams lost in the fourth round. "Again, I mean, it’s not what you set out to do. It was, I guess, bad luck for the Williams sisters to lose. Unfortunate, I guess. They’ll be back, I’m sure."
The 29-year-old Fish has been moving up the rankings this year while the rest of the American tennis scene has been dropping from the top places. Now at No. 9 in the world, things seem to be coming together rather nicely.
At the All England Club, Fish has held serve in 64 of his 65 games — his one break is the best of any of the eight quarterfinalists — and won 12 of 13 sets.
"This is much different than ‘08 U.S. Open for me. I feel a lot different," said Fish, who reached the quarterfinals at that major tournament but lost to Nadal. "I feel like a completely different player. So I’m hoping it doesn’t end."
If it does end in the quarterfinals, though, it will again be Nadal that sends Fish packing. But the defending champion from Spain hurt his left foot while beating Juan Martin del Potro, giving Fish a good chance to reach his first Grand Slam semifinal.
The match is scheduled for Wednesday.
"You know, you can’t go out there thinking you can’t win," said Fish, who was speaking before Nadal hurt himself on Centre Court. "But I’ve never been past this spot in a Grand Slam. Past this spot is where I want to be, where you set your goals for."
Nadal limped for part of his match, and twice called for a trainer against del Potro. He said he watched Fish play earlier in the tournament, but didn’t get to see any of the match against Berdych.
"I need be at my 100 percent. If not, going to be impossible against him. So I have to recover," Nadal said. "Let’s see what’s going on and let’s see how the MRI looks. And after, let’s see if we have the chance to recover for Wednesday. I don’t know."
Nadal may have missed it, but probably would have been impressed with what Fish did against Berdych. The 10th-seeded American hit 23 aces and saved both break points he faced.
He finished with 42 winners and only 12 unforced errors, just the kind of numbers you need to go far.
"This is obviously a huge tournament for me. Suits my game probably better than any other tournament for me Grand Slam-wise," said Fish, who also reached the quarterfinals at the 2007 Australian Open. "So I felt like maybe it’s one of those ones that I really wanted to do well at. You know, in the quarterfinals. Feels great again."
Another hot day like Monday, when on-court temperatures reached 93 degrees, might make Fish feel even more confident when it comes time to face Nadal — a man he has lost to all five times they have played.
"Hot. Yeah, hot," Fish said when asked what kind of conditions he wanted for Wednesday. "Hot, quick, humid."
COMEBACK KID: Martina Hingis can probably sympathize with Serena Williams more than just about anyone.
The former top-ranked player from Switzerland won five Grand Slam titles in her career but was then off the tour for the 2003 and ‘04 seasons. She only played one event in 2005 but returned full time for 2006 and ‘07, winning three titles and moving up to No. 6 in the rankings.
"I think the hardest part of coming back is the concentration, it’s not even the tennis," said Hingis, the 1997 Wimbledon champion. "It’s the movement on the court; you have to see the balls."
The 30-year-old Hingis spoke Monday before both Serena and Venus Williams lost in the fourth round at Wimbledon, but she certainly knew what they would be going through.
Serena won the Wimbledon title last year, but she only returned to action two weeks ago following some serious health problems, including blood clots in her lungs. Venus returned at the same tournament at Eastbourne after about five months off with a hip injury.
Besides talking about their struggles, Hingis also remembered what it was like to face Serena when she was still active.
"(Serena) she was my least favorite player to play," said Hingis, who retired for good in 2007 after testing positive for cocaine during Wimbledon. "Her game was different. I was more passive, my defense had to be good before I could be aggressive."
LOVE AND HATE: Hassan Ndayishimiye grew up in a shantytown in his native Burundi and hated tennis. Now he’s in the second round of the boys tournament at Wimbledon and loving it.
The 16-year-old Ndayishimiye, the first Burundian to play at Wimbledon, beat Matias Sborowitz of Chile 6-4, 6-4 Monday in the first round in his Grand Slam debut.
"I was patient," said Ndayishimiye, a wild-card entry in the qualifying tournament. "This is a big deal because I wasn’t even supposed to be here, but they decided to give me a chance to come here and see how I could do.
"I took my opportunity and I’m actually trying to keep it going."
Ndayishimiye grew up in a shantytown in Bujumbura. When he was 4, he was pushed to play tennis by his father, who is a tennis coach.
"He was actually forcing me to play tennis because I didn’t really like tennis," Ndayishimiye said. "I kept on playing and I won some tournaments. That’s what made me like tennis because I was a kid and I liked winning."
Ndayishimiye receives assistance from the International Tennis Federation and the Grand Slam Development Fund, which was established in 1986 to help young tennis talents from developing nations.
Since 2009, he’s lived and trained at the ITF Training Center in Pretoria, South Africa.
At Wimbledon, Ndayishimiye has had a close-up view of the professional game.
"I’m enjoying seeing the players," Ndayishimiye said. "I haven’t really talked to any of them, but I’ve said ‘Hi."’
-- Chris Lehourites
Other Tennis News
Nadal to skip Spain's Davis Cup match with U.S.
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Rafael Nadal will skip Spain's Davis Cup quarterfinal against the United States in July, blaming his decision on the ITF for poor scheduling.
The six-time French Open champion harshly criticized the ITF after beating Juan Martin del Potro in the fourth round at Wimbledon on Monday, saying the body is too inflexible and should try to find ways to make it easier for top players to compete in the Davis Cup.
"The problem is the ITF, my opinion. They don't want to change nothing," Nadal said. "And some thing they are doing bad, because the best players of the world, a lot of times we are not able to play (Davis Cup). ... They have to think what's going on, no? But they don't think nothing. They keep (making) money and that's it."
Nadal sustained a foot injury in his match against Del Potro, but had already decided not to play against the United States, saying he needed a rest of at least 15-20 days after Wimbledon to prepare for the second half of the season and the U.S. Open, one of his priorities.
"I cannot be in every place. I cannot be competitive every week of the year," Nadal said. "My body needs to rest. ... Seriously, it's not possible be No. 1 or No. 2 playing Davis Cup every tie, be in all the places, be competitive in all the tournaments. ... So for that reason I cannot be there. For me it's tough. But for the ITF, doesn't matter."
Spain captain Albert Costa picked his team Monday with David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco, Feliciano Lopez and Marcel Granollers representing the four-time champions in Austin, Texas, from July 8-10.
Nadal won both of his singles matches in Spain's 4-1 first-round victory at Belgium in March.
The U.S. Open runs from Aug. 29-Sept. 11.
