Wimbledon woe for Venus as lowly Pironkova stuns SW19
The five-time champion was dumped out 6-2 6-3 by world number 82 Tsvetana Pironkova in one of the greatest upsets ever seen at the All-England Club.
The second seed saw her serve broken four times by the 22-year-oldBulgarian, who wrapped up victory in one hour and 25 minutes on Court One.
Her sister Serena was on top form to see off the spirited challenge of China’s Li Na but there was an upset earlier on Centre Court when eighth seed Kim Clijsters fell to the impressive performance of Russian Vera Zvonareva.
The defending champion will take on Petra Kvitova, who launched an unlikely comeback to edge past fellow unseeded player Kaia Kanepi.
But her older sister Venus later delivered a blunt assessment of her performance.
“I just didn’t get enough balls in,” the 30-year-old said. “I just let it spiral and didn’t get any balls in. I had a lot of opportunities and a lot of short balls. I just seemed to hit each one out.
“Obviously she’s played well to get this far, but I don’t think I did anything right today.
“I missed all shots today – forehand, volley, backhand. If there was a shot to miss, I missed it.”
Pironkova admitted Wimbledon was like a “religion” for her when she was growing up as she savoured her famous victory.
“I still cannot believe that I reached the semi-finals,” she said. “This is truly like a dream to me, and I will try to enjoy it as much as I can.”
Top seed Serena proved too powerful for China’s Li as she took her aces tally to 73 for the tournament during her 7-5 6-3 victory.
Venus is next on the list at 30 and Serena believes she is serving as well as she ever has.
“I never serve this well,” she said. “I always serve well at Wimbledon, but this is the first time I’ve ever served this well so consistently. I didn’t have as many aces – I only had 11. But I thought I had a lot of service winners, which weren’t necessarily aces but were unreturnable serves.”
Zvonareva edged an entertaining contest against Clijsters, showing strength and quality during long rallies to claim a 3-6 6-4 6-2 triumph.
The 25-year-old, who reached the Australian Open semi-final last year but was troubled by ankle problems for much of 2009 before undergoing surgery, later revealed how her experience had taught her to stay focused despite losing the first set.
And she now feels mentally strong enough to make her mark further in a grand slam.
“I think, to be able to reach this stage of a grand slam, you need experience,” she said. “You need the maturity. It comes with years on the tour.”
Kvitova saved five match points and came from a double break down to secure a thrilling 4-6 7-6 8-6 victory against Estonian qualifier Kanepi.
The Czech left-hander, who eight days ago had never won a match on grass, was 4-0 down in the final set but dug deep to triumph after two hours and 38 minutes.
The 20-year-old said: “I’m very happy. I cannot believe it. It’s something incredible.”
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