Wimbledon 2013: A year of upsets and withdrawals
Overwhelming favourites ousted early in injury-blighted Grand Slam.
This year’s Wimbledon was marred by several shocking results and injury withdrawals. PHOTO: AFP
The 2013 edition of the Grand Slam was marred by shocks, injuries and tumbles.
However, it came to a fitting end for the home fans as Andy Murray ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a Wimbledon men’s singles champion — the Scot defeating world number one Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the final.
The greens of the All England Club have produced sensational tennis spectacles over the years. But this year, early high-profile exits, heart-breaking injuries and disrupting weather made the headlines for the most part.
The first major shock came on the opening day of the competition, when 12-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal, who had recently completed a phenomenal comeback from a career-threatening knee injury by winning the French Open, was eliminated by Steve Darcis.
The Belgian achieved the seemingly impossible result emphatically in straight sets to hand the Spaniard his first ever opening round loss at a major. The 135th-ranked player in the world broke Nadal’s 22-match winning streak and registered a shock 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (10/8), 6-4 win to open the floodgates to more unthinkable results.
The next shocker was the defeat of arguably the greatest tennis player of all time, Roger Federer. In what is widely known as Federer’s favourite Grand Slam, the defending champion was shown the exit door in the second round by Ukraine’s 116-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky. The 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/5), 7-5, 7-6 (7/5) loss was the Swiss maestro’s earliest Grand Slam defeat for a decade.
Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had curtains drawn upon his Wimbledon campaign only in the second round when he had to withdraw due to injury. A troublesome knee forced the sixth seed to throw in the towel just before the fourth set in a match he was losing 6-3, 3-6, 3-6 to Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis.
In the women’s event, overwhelming favourite, world number one, Serena Williams was sent packing in the fourth round by German 23rd-seed Sabine Lisicki. The stunning 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 loss marked the end of an unbelievable winning run of 34 matches for the American.
It was a forgettable Wimbledon for another favourite, Maria Sharapova, who slumped to a 6-3, 6-4 defeat to Portuguese qualifier Michelle Larcher De Brito in the second round. The third-seeded Russian suffered a hip injury during the match as a result of three painful falls, although nothing could be taken away from the grit and class shown by the 131-ranked De Brito, who completed an emphatic straight sets victory against the 2004 champion.
Injury became the reason for Belarusian star Victoria Azarenka’s exit as well, who had to withdraw minutes before her second-round tie against Italian Flavia Pennetta.
Whether it was poor court conditions or the increasing quality of the less-fancied opponents, this year’s Wimbledon was definitely one that will remain in memory for a long time.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2013.
However, it came to a fitting end for the home fans as Andy Murray ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a Wimbledon men’s singles champion — the Scot defeating world number one Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the final.
The greens of the All England Club have produced sensational tennis spectacles over the years. But this year, early high-profile exits, heart-breaking injuries and disrupting weather made the headlines for the most part.
The first major shock came on the opening day of the competition, when 12-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal, who had recently completed a phenomenal comeback from a career-threatening knee injury by winning the French Open, was eliminated by Steve Darcis.
The Belgian achieved the seemingly impossible result emphatically in straight sets to hand the Spaniard his first ever opening round loss at a major. The 135th-ranked player in the world broke Nadal’s 22-match winning streak and registered a shock 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (10/8), 6-4 win to open the floodgates to more unthinkable results.
The next shocker was the defeat of arguably the greatest tennis player of all time, Roger Federer. In what is widely known as Federer’s favourite Grand Slam, the defending champion was shown the exit door in the second round by Ukraine’s 116-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky. The 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/5), 7-5, 7-6 (7/5) loss was the Swiss maestro’s earliest Grand Slam defeat for a decade.
Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had curtains drawn upon his Wimbledon campaign only in the second round when he had to withdraw due to injury. A troublesome knee forced the sixth seed to throw in the towel just before the fourth set in a match he was losing 6-3, 3-6, 3-6 to Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis.
In the women’s event, overwhelming favourite, world number one, Serena Williams was sent packing in the fourth round by German 23rd-seed Sabine Lisicki. The stunning 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 loss marked the end of an unbelievable winning run of 34 matches for the American.
It was a forgettable Wimbledon for another favourite, Maria Sharapova, who slumped to a 6-3, 6-4 defeat to Portuguese qualifier Michelle Larcher De Brito in the second round. The third-seeded Russian suffered a hip injury during the match as a result of three painful falls, although nothing could be taken away from the grit and class shown by the 131-ranked De Brito, who completed an emphatic straight sets victory against the 2004 champion.
Injury became the reason for Belarusian star Victoria Azarenka’s exit as well, who had to withdraw minutes before her second-round tie against Italian Flavia Pennetta.
Whether it was poor court conditions or the increasing quality of the less-fancied opponents, this year’s Wimbledon was definitely one that will remain in memory for a long time.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2013.