Six-time champion Serena Williams stormed into her ninth Wimbledon final in record time today and will meet Angelique Kerber after the German ended Venus Williams&#39;s hopes of becoming the oldest woman in the title match in 22 years.

Serena, bidding for a seventh Wimbledon and an Open Era record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title, took just 48mins 34sec, the fastest ever semi-final at the All England Club, to secure a 6-2, 6-0 win over world number 50 Elena Vesnina.

But her hopes of meeting Venus for the fifth time in a Wimbledon final and ninth time at a major were shattered when fourth seed Angelique Kerber, the Australian Open champion, saw off the 36-year-old 6-4, 6-4.

Serena, playing in her 32nd Grand Slam semi-final, blasted last-four debutant Vesnina off the sun-kissed Centre Court in front of Prince William&#39;s wife Kate watching from up in the Royal Box.

The American fired 11 aces, 28 winners and committed just seven unforced errors, breaking serve five times to reach her 28th Grand Slam final.

Vesnina won just three points off the Williams serve in the first set and none in the second.

&quot;I&#39;m very happy. I was really focused today. We&#39;ve had tough matches before and I knew she could bring it to me on this surface,&quot; said Williams, who has now defeated the Russian five times in five meetings.

Despite the painfully one-sided semi-final Williams, into her third Grand Slam final of the year, insisted it had been a tough workout.

&quot;It&#39;s never easy out there, every point you have to fight for,&quot; she said.

Vesnina, who was due to face Serena again in the women&#39;s doubles later Thursday, admitted she just wasn&#39;t good enough.

&quot;I felt like I had no chance. Serena was playing really good. She was in a great mood, and her serve was working really well. She was placing it amazingly,&quot; said the Russian.

&quot;She was just better all over the court.&quot; 
 
Enjoying life

Today&rsquo;s contest saw Serena race to a 4-0 lead in the first set before 29-year-old Vesnina got on the board. But the set was over in 28 minutes courtesy of Williams&#39;s seventh ace.

The second set was wrapped up in just 20 minutes with breaks in the first, third and fifth games.

Saturday&#39;s final will give Serena a chance to win a first major of the season after losing to Kerber in the final in Melbourne and Garbine Muguruza in Paris.

Kerber saw off five-time champion Venus in 71 minutes on Centre Court to reach her first All England Club title match.

&quot;Venus won so many times here and was playing really well. That&#39;s why I&#39;m so happy to reach my first Wimbledon final,&quot; Kerber said.

&quot;It&#39;s a really good feeling. I&#39;m really enjoying my tennis life.&quot;

Kerber, 28, stunned Serena to win her maiden Grand Slam crown in the Australian Open final in January.

Kerber can now set her sights on becoming the first player to defeat both of the American siblings in the same Grand Slam since Kim Clijsters at the 2009 US Open.

If she can cause another upset against Serena, Kerber would become the first German woman to win Wimbledon since Steffi Graf in 1996.

She has raced through her six matches at Wimbledon without dropping a set, has a WTA tour-best 34 match wins in 2016 and is guaranteed to rise to a career-high second in the world rankings next week.

Venus had won all eight of her previous Wimbledon semi-finals dating back 16 years to her maiden appearance in the last four when she defeated Serena.

But in her first All England Club semi-final for seven years, Venus-&nbsp;the oldest woman to make the last four since Martina Navratilova in 1994&nbsp;was unable to roll back the years one more time. 
 
(AFP)

Kerber saw off Venus, shattering hopes of Serena Williams meeting her sister for the fifth time in a Wimbledon final

Six-time champion Serena Williams stormed into her ninth Wimbledon final in record time today and will meet Angelique Kerber after the German ended Venus Williams's hopes of becoming the oldest woman in the title match in 22 years. Serena, bidding for a seventh Wimbledon and an Open Era record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title, took just 48mins 34sec, the fastest ever semi-final at the All England Club, to secure a 6-2, 6-0 win over world number 50 Elena Vesnina. But her hopes of meeting Venus for the fifth time in a Wimbledon final and ninth time at a major were shattered when fourth seed Angelique Kerber, the Australian Open champion, saw off the 36-year-old 6-4, 6-4. Serena, playing in her 32nd Grand Slam semi-final, blasted last-four debutant Vesnina off the sun-kissed Centre Court in front of Prince William's wife Kate watching from up in the Royal Box. The American fired 11 aces, 28 winners and committed just seven unforced errors, breaking serve five times to reach her 28th Grand Slam final. Vesnina won just three points off the Williams serve in the first set and none in the second. "I'm very happy. I was really focused today. We've had tough matches before and I knew she could bring it to me on this surface," said Williams, who has now defeated the Russian five times in five meetings. Despite the painfully one-sided semi-final Williams, into her third Grand Slam final of the year, insisted it had been a tough workout. "It's never easy out there, every point you have to fight for," she said. Vesnina, who was due to face Serena again in the women's doubles later Thursday, admitted she just wasn't good enough. "I felt like I had no chance. Serena was playing really good. She was in a great mood, and her serve was working really well. She was placing it amazingly," said the Russian. "She was just better all over the court." Enjoying life Today’s contest saw Serena race to a 4-0 lead in the first set before 29-year-old Vesnina got on the board. But the set was over in 28 minutes courtesy of Williams's seventh ace. The second set was wrapped up in just 20 minutes with breaks in the first, third and fifth games. Saturday's final will give Serena a chance to win a first major of the season after losing to Kerber in the final in Melbourne and Garbine Muguruza in Paris. Kerber saw off five-time champion Venus in 71 minutes on Centre Court to reach her first All England Club title match. "Venus won so many times here and was playing really well. That's why I'm so happy to reach my first Wimbledon final," Kerber said. "It's a really good feeling. I'm really enjoying my tennis life." Kerber, 28, stunned Serena to win her maiden Grand Slam crown in the Australian Open final in January. Kerber can now set her sights on becoming the first player to defeat both of the American siblings in the same Grand Slam since Kim Clijsters at the 2009 US Open. If she can cause another upset against Serena, Kerber would become the first German woman to win Wimbledon since Steffi Graf in 1996. She has raced through her six matches at Wimbledon without dropping a set, has a WTA tour-best 34 match wins in 2016 and is guaranteed to rise to a career-high second in the world rankings next week. Venus had won all eight of her previous Wimbledon semi-finals dating back 16 years to her maiden appearance in the last four when she defeated Serena. But in her first All England Club semi-final for seven years, Venus- the oldest woman to make the last four since Martina Navratilova in 1994 was unable to roll back the years one more time. (AFP)

Serena, Kerber to meet in Wimbledon final

Serena and Venus Williams closed today on a fifth all-sister Wimbledon final while beaten quarter-finalist Dominika Cibulkova prepared to rush back to Slovakia to get ready for her wedding. 
 
Six-time champion Serena reached her 10th semi-final at the All England Club with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Russia 21st seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. 
 
She goes on to face Russian world number 50 Elena Vesnina on Thursday for a place in the final. 
 
Five-time champion Venus, seeded eight, enjoyed a 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 victory over Kazakhstans world number 96 Yaroslava Shvedova to reach her first Wimbledon semi-final in seven years. 
 
The 36-year-old will now face German fourth seed and Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber who reached her second Wimbledon semi-final with a 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) win over Simona Halep, the fifth seed from Romania. 
 
Vesnina made her first semi-final at a major, by seeing off bride-to-be Cibulkova, the Slovak 19th seed, 6-2, 6-2. &quot;They showed Venuss score on court and I was like yaaaay. I want her to win so bad, but not in the final if Im there,&quot; said defending champion Serena, who took her Grand Slam match win record to 302 -- four behind Martina Navratilovas all-time mark. 
 
It is the 11th time that the sisters have advanced to the semi-finals of the same Grand Slam event. 
 
Serena took a 5-0 career lead over Russian 21st seed Pavlyuchenkova into Tuesdays match, having not dropped a set to her opponent since their first meeting in 2010. But the match was decided in the ninth game of both sets with Williams carving out the only breaks of the match against Pavlyuchenkova, playing in her first Wimbledon quarter-final. 
 
The American finished the match with an 11th ace. 
 
&quot;It was good. I am excited to be able to win and get through, it felt really good,&quot; said Serena, who is bidding to win a record-equalling Open era 22nd Grand Slam title. On the potential of an all-Williams final, Serena refused to get too far ahead of herself even though she has a 4-0 winning record over Vesnina. &quot;We dont really talk too much about it but we are playing doubles later so we are just happy to be in the semi-finals,&quot; she said. 
 
Venus is the oldest womens semi-finalist since Martina Navratilova in 1994. Venus, who won the last of her seven Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon in 2008, is back in the last-four of a Grand Slam for the first time since the 2010 US Open. 
 
The eight-time Wimbledon finalist trails 3-2 in her five career meetings with 28-year-old Kerber, who won their only meeting on grass in the 2012 Olympics at Wimbledon. &quot;I love playing the game. When you are winning matches it makes it that much sweeter,&quot; the German said. &quot;You cant always have these big moments. I guess if you are Serena Williams it happens a lot, but for Venus Williams this is an awesome day. 
 
&quot;The first set tiebreak was key for Venus on Tuesday as she over-turned a 2/5 deficit before Shvedovas game fell apart in the second set. Kerber now has 33 match wins in 2016, joint-best with Cibulkova. &quot;I have had a great year so far. I think I am playing my best tennis. Hopefully I can play a few more matches here,&quot; she said. 
 
The 28-year-old Kerber, who also made the semi-finals in 2012, came out on top in a big-hitting battle with Halep, who was a semi-finalist in 2014. Cibulkova is due to marry fiance Miso Navara in her hometown of Bratislava on Saturday -- the same day as the womens final -- and the 27-year-old was willing to postpone the ceremony if she won her quarter-final. 
 
But 29-year-old Vesnina took advantage of a distracted display from Cibulkova to become the fifth unseeded woman to reach the All England Club semi-finals since the Grand Slams switched to 32 seeds in 2001. 
 
&quot;Serena is one of the greatest. I always watch her matches,&quot; said Vesnina who dropped out of the top 100 last year. 
 
&quot;I have to go on to the court with all my heart and take my chances.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

It is the 11th time that the William sisters have advanced to the semi-finals of the same Grand Slam event

Serena and Venus Williams closed today on a fifth all-sister Wimbledon final while beaten quarter-finalist Dominika Cibulkova prepared to rush back to Slovakia to get ready for her wedding. Six-time champion Serena reached her 10th semi-final at the All England Club with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Russia 21st seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. She goes on to face Russian world number 50 Elena Vesnina on Thursday for a place in the final. Five-time champion Venus, seeded eight, enjoyed a 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 victory over Kazakhstans world number 96 Yaroslava Shvedova to reach her first Wimbledon semi-final in seven years. The 36-year-old will now face German fourth seed and Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber who reached her second Wimbledon semi-final with a 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) win over Simona Halep, the fifth seed from Romania. Vesnina made her first semi-final at a major, by seeing off bride-to-be Cibulkova, the Slovak 19th seed, 6-2, 6-2. "They showed Venuss score on court and I was like yaaaay. I want her to win so bad, but not in the final if Im there," said defending champion Serena, who took her Grand Slam match win record to 302 -- four behind Martina Navratilovas all-time mark. It is the 11th time that the sisters have advanced to the semi-finals of the same Grand Slam event. Serena took a 5-0 career lead over Russian 21st seed Pavlyuchenkova into Tuesdays match, having not dropped a set to her opponent since their first meeting in 2010. But the match was decided in the ninth game of both sets with Williams carving out the only breaks of the match against Pavlyuchenkova, playing in her first Wimbledon quarter-final. The American finished the match with an 11th ace. "It was good. I am excited to be able to win and get through, it felt really good," said Serena, who is bidding to win a record-equalling Open era 22nd Grand Slam title. On the potential of an all-Williams final, Serena refused to get too far ahead of herself even though she has a 4-0 winning record over Vesnina. "We dont really talk too much about it but we are playing doubles later so we are just happy to be in the semi-finals," she said. Venus is the oldest womens semi-finalist since Martina Navratilova in 1994. Venus, who won the last of her seven Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon in 2008, is back in the last-four of a Grand Slam for the first time since the 2010 US Open. The eight-time Wimbledon finalist trails 3-2 in her five career meetings with 28-year-old Kerber, who won their only meeting on grass in the 2012 Olympics at Wimbledon. "I love playing the game. When you are winning matches it makes it that much sweeter," the German said. "You cant always have these big moments. I guess if you are Serena Williams it happens a lot, but for Venus Williams this is an awesome day. "The first set tiebreak was key for Venus on Tuesday as she over-turned a 2/5 deficit before Shvedovas game fell apart in the second set. Kerber now has 33 match wins in 2016, joint-best with Cibulkova. "I have had a great year so far. I think I am playing my best tennis. Hopefully I can play a few more matches here," she said. The 28-year-old Kerber, who also made the semi-finals in 2012, came out on top in a big-hitting battle with Halep, who was a semi-finalist in 2014. Cibulkova is due to marry fiance Miso Navara in her hometown of Bratislava on Saturday -- the same day as the womens final -- and the 27-year-old was willing to postpone the ceremony if she won her quarter-final. But 29-year-old Vesnina took advantage of a distracted display from Cibulkova to become the fifth unseeded woman to reach the All England Club semi-finals since the Grand Slams switched to 32 seeds in 2001. "Serena is one of the greatest. I always watch her matches," said Vesnina who dropped out of the top 100 last year. "I have to go on to the court with all my heart and take my chances." (AFP)

Serena, Venus close in on Wimbledon final

Germany&#39;s Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber reached her second Wimbledon semi-final today and edged closer to the world number one spot. 
 
The fourth-seeded left-hander emerged victorious over Simona Halep, the fifth seed from Romania, 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) on Centre Court and will face either Venus Williams or Yaroslava Shvedova for a place in Saturday`s final. 
 
Kerber is now in sight of becoming the new world number one, although she needs to win the title while seeing Serena Williams fail to make the semi-finals. 
 
&quot;I think we are both really good returners. It`s always tough to play against Simona. I won the last point and that`s what counts,&quot; said the winner. 
 
Kerber now has 33 match wins in 2016, joint-best with fellow quarter-finalist Dominika Cibulkova. 
 
&quot;I have had a great year so far. I think I am playing my best tennis. Hopefully I can play a few more matches here.&quot; 
 
The 28-year-old Kerber, who also made the semi-finals in 2012, came out on top in a big-hitting battle with Halep, who was a semi-finalist in 2014. 
 
The first set alone saw nine breaks of serve in 12 games with Kerber squandering leads of 3-1 and 5-3 before her Romanian opponent double-faulted on set point. 
 
Kerber was 4-2 and 5-3 in front in the second before the tenacious Halep fought back to reach the tiebreak in a set which featured four more breaks. 
 
But Kerber dominated the tiebreak, going to match point when Halep was bamboozled by a net cord and then taking victory off a backhand error. 
 
(AFP)

This will be Angelique Kerber?s second Wimbledon semi-final where she will face either Venus Williams or Yaroslava Shvedova

Germany's Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber reached her second Wimbledon semi-final today and edged closer to the world number one spot. The fourth-seeded left-hander emerged victorious over Simona Halep, the fifth seed from Romania, 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) on Centre Court and will face either Venus Williams or Yaroslava Shvedova for a place in Saturday`s final. Kerber is now in sight of becoming the new world number one, although she needs to win the title while seeing Serena Williams fail to make the semi-finals. "I think we are both really good returners. It`s always tough to play against Simona. I won the last point and that`s what counts," said the winner. Kerber now has 33 match wins in 2016, joint-best with fellow quarter-finalist Dominika Cibulkova. "I have had a great year so far. I think I am playing my best tennis. Hopefully I can play a few more matches here." The 28-year-old Kerber, who also made the semi-finals in 2012, came out on top in a big-hitting battle with Halep, who was a semi-finalist in 2014. The first set alone saw nine breaks of serve in 12 games with Kerber squandering leads of 3-1 and 5-3 before her Romanian opponent double-faulted on set point. Kerber was 4-2 and 5-3 in front in the second before the tenacious Halep fought back to reach the tiebreak in a set which featured four more breaks. But Kerber dominated the tiebreak, going to match point when Halep was bamboozled by a net cord and then taking victory off a backhand error. (AFP)

Kerber beats Halep, through Wimbeldon semi-final

Andy Murray racked up his 50th Wimbledon match win while Roger Federer reached the quarter-finals for the 14th time on Monday as the pair edged closer to a dream title match. 
 
Second seed Murray, the 2013 champion, eased to a 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 win over fiery Australian Nick Kyrgios and will face French 12th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga for a place in the semi-finals. 
 
Murray leads Tsonga 12-2 in previous meetings. 
 
Federer, meanwhile, went equal with Jimmy Connors&#39; mark of 14 quarter-finals at Wimbledon and tied Martina Navratilova&#39;s all-time Slam record of 306 match wins by seeing off Steve Johnson of the United States 6-2, 6-3, 7-5. 
 
Kyrgios, the 15th seed who defeated Rafael Nadal at the tournament in 2014, did not force a break point on Murray&#39;s serve as he slipped to his fifth loss in five meetings against the world number two. 
 
He did manage to save two match points in the ninth game of the third set but was powerless to prevent Murray taking victory with an eighth ace of the contest. 
 
&quot;The first set was very tight. I managed to get the break at 6-5 but it was very tight up to that point,&quot; explained Murray. 
 
&quot;The second set was obviously more comfortable. Nick lost his focus a bit in the middle part of that set.&quot; 
 
Kyrgios condemned his own performance. 
 
&quot;The first set was OK but after that it was pathetic,&quot; said the 21-year-old in a typically surly post-match press conference. 
 
Federer eyes revenge 
 
Seven-time champion Federer, the third seed, will take on Croatia&#39;s Marin Cilic for a place in the semi-finals. 
 
Cilic, the ninth seeded Croat, progressed to his third successive Wimbledon quarter-final when Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori pulled out of their last-16 clash with a rib injury. 
 
Federer has a 5-1 record over Cilic but the big-server stunned the 17-time major champion in the US Open semi-finals in 2014 on his way to his maiden Grand Slam title. 
 
&quot;He blew me off the court in the US Open a few years ago and I hope to get him back,&quot; said Federer. 
 
Johnson, playing in his first fourth round at a Slam, was comprehensively out-played in the first two sets. 
 
He rallied to break the 34-year-old Federer in the fourth and sixth games of the third set but the former US college champion was reeled in on both occasions. 
 
Federer has reached the last eight without dropping a set, easing to four successive wins on centre court. 
 
&quot;I would never have thought I would win the first four rounds in straight sets. I now need to play my best tennis,&quot; he added. 
 
Nishikori pulled out against Cilic suffering from a rib injury at 6-1, 5-1 down. 
 
The 26-year-old confirmed it was the same injury which forced him out of the Halle tournament in the run-up to Wimbledon. 
 
&quot;It got worse after the second round. I couldn&#39;t compete,&quot; said Nishikori. 
 
Cilic had taken the first set in just 16 minutes, allowing Nishikori only seven points. 
 
Querrey on a roll 
 
Sam Querrey followed up his shock defeat of defending champion Novak Djokovic by beating French veteran Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final. 
 
Querrey, the 28th seed, is the first American in the last-eight at Wimbledon since Mardy Fish in 2011, perfect timing on US Independence Day. 
 
Querrey said he still hasn&#39;t come down from his stunning upset of world number one Djokovic. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m not going to lie. After the Novak match, I watched every highlight I could over and over. Enjoyed the hell out of that moment,&quot; he said. 
 
Querrey will next face Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic, who came back from two sets down for the first time in his career to beat Belgium&#39;s David Goffin. 
 
Raonic, a Wimbledon semi-finalist in 2014, won 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. 
 
In an all-Czech match-up, world number 64 Jiri Vesely saved five match points against 10th seed and 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych in their clash which was suspended for darkness in the fourth set. 
 
Vesely took first set 6-4 and the fourth, 7-6 (11/9); Berdych claimed the second and third sets, 6-3 and 7-6 (10/8). 
 
The winner will face French 32nd seed Lucas Pouille, who made the last eight of a Slam for the first time by seeing off 2011 quarter-finalist Bernard Tomic, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 10-8. 
 
Pouille, 22, had never won a match on grass before this year&#39;s Wimbledon. 
 
(AFP)

Murray will play Tsonga in the semi-finals, Federer will play Croatia's Martin Cilic

Andy Murray racked up his 50th Wimbledon match win while Roger Federer reached the quarter-finals for the 14th time on Monday as the pair edged closer to a dream title match. Second seed Murray, the 2013 champion, eased to a 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 win over fiery Australian Nick Kyrgios and will face French 12th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga for a place in the semi-finals. Murray leads Tsonga 12-2 in previous meetings. Federer, meanwhile, went equal with Jimmy Connors' mark of 14 quarter-finals at Wimbledon and tied Martina Navratilova's all-time Slam record of 306 match wins by seeing off Steve Johnson of the United States 6-2, 6-3, 7-5. Kyrgios, the 15th seed who defeated Rafael Nadal at the tournament in 2014, did not force a break point on Murray's serve as he slipped to his fifth loss in five meetings against the world number two. He did manage to save two match points in the ninth game of the third set but was powerless to prevent Murray taking victory with an eighth ace of the contest. "The first set was very tight. I managed to get the break at 6-5 but it was very tight up to that point," explained Murray. "The second set was obviously more comfortable. Nick lost his focus a bit in the middle part of that set." Kyrgios condemned his own performance. "The first set was OK but after that it was pathetic," said the 21-year-old in a typically surly post-match press conference. Federer eyes revenge Seven-time champion Federer, the third seed, will take on Croatia's Marin Cilic for a place in the semi-finals. Cilic, the ninth seeded Croat, progressed to his third successive Wimbledon quarter-final when Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori pulled out of their last-16 clash with a rib injury. Federer has a 5-1 record over Cilic but the big-server stunned the 17-time major champion in the US Open semi-finals in 2014 on his way to his maiden Grand Slam title. "He blew me off the court in the US Open a few years ago and I hope to get him back," said Federer. Johnson, playing in his first fourth round at a Slam, was comprehensively out-played in the first two sets. He rallied to break the 34-year-old Federer in the fourth and sixth games of the third set but the former US college champion was reeled in on both occasions. Federer has reached the last eight without dropping a set, easing to four successive wins on centre court. "I would never have thought I would win the first four rounds in straight sets. I now need to play my best tennis," he added. Nishikori pulled out against Cilic suffering from a rib injury at 6-1, 5-1 down. The 26-year-old confirmed it was the same injury which forced him out of the Halle tournament in the run-up to Wimbledon. "It got worse after the second round. I couldn't compete," said Nishikori. Cilic had taken the first set in just 16 minutes, allowing Nishikori only seven points. Querrey on a roll Sam Querrey followed up his shock defeat of defending champion Novak Djokovic by beating French veteran Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final. Querrey, the 28th seed, is the first American in the last-eight at Wimbledon since Mardy Fish in 2011, perfect timing on US Independence Day. Querrey said he still hasn't come down from his stunning upset of world number one Djokovic. "I'm not going to lie. After the Novak match, I watched every highlight I could over and over. Enjoyed the hell out of that moment," he said. Querrey will next face Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic, who came back from two sets down for the first time in his career to beat Belgium's David Goffin. Raonic, a Wimbledon semi-finalist in 2014, won 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. In an all-Czech match-up, world number 64 Jiri Vesely saved five match points against 10th seed and 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych in their clash which was suspended for darkness in the fourth set. Vesely took first set 6-4 and the fourth, 7-6 (11/9); Berdych claimed the second and third sets, 6-3 and 7-6 (10/8). The winner will face French 32nd seed Lucas Pouille, who made the last eight of a Slam for the first time by seeing off 2011 quarter-finalist Bernard Tomic, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 10-8. Pouille, 22, had never won a match on grass before this year's Wimbledon. (AFP)

Murray wins his 50th match, Federer reachees his 14th Wimbledon quarter-final

Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori pulled out of Wimbledon mid-way through his last 16 match against Marin Cilic on Monday, suffering from a rib injury. 
 
An off-colour Nishikori consulted the trainer and doctor during the fourth round contest on Court Two and finally retired from the match at 6-1, 5-1 down. 
 
He confirmed it was the same injury which forced him out of the Halle tourament in the run-up to Wimbledon. 
 
&quot;It got worse after the second round. I couldn&#39;t compete today,&quot; said Nishikori. 
 
Croatian ninth seed Cilic now faces either seven-time champion Roger Federer or Steve Johnson of the United States in Wednesday&#39;s quarter-finals. 
 
Nishikori&#39;s troubles were evident during the first set, when he found himself 5-0 down within 10 minutes, having won just two points as Cilic hit 10 aces. 
 
The Japanese did win one service game but by the end of the 16-minute set, he had hit just two winners to 18 from his opponent. 
 
He did manage to break Cilic early in the second set but could not stop the slump. 
 
In the breaks of play, 26-year-old Nishikori looked forlorn, with his head down, staring at the ground. 
 
He had his head in his hands after serving a double fault to go 4-1 down in the second set, after which his coaching staff -- including former French Open champion Michael Chang -- pleaded with him to call it quits. 
 
Nishikori called for the trainer and the doctor and was given some pills. 
 
After one more game he shook hands with his opponent. 
 
Nishikori hit just five winners in the match to 28 from Cilic, and his fastest serve was at only 103 miles per hour. He had managed to get just 35 per cent of his returns in play. 
 
Nishikori also withdrew from last year&#39;s Wimbledon in the second round with a left calf injury. 
 
He was bidding to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the first time in seven attempts -- the only one of the four majors where he has yet to make the last eight. 
 
Nishikori was bidding to become only the second Japanese man to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals, after Shuzo Matsuoka in 1995. 
 
He was the last Asian player left in the tournament after compatriot Misaki Doi was beaten in the women&#39;s last 16 by Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber in the preceding match on the 4,000-seater Court Two show court. 
 
Cilic, who beat Nishikori in the 2014 US Open final, has now reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals three times in a row, while Monday was the second time Nishikori had made it to the last 16. 
 
(AFP)

Nishikori also withdrew from last year's Wimbledon in the second round with a left calf injury

Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori pulled out of Wimbledon mid-way through his last 16 match against Marin Cilic on Monday, suffering from a rib injury. An off-colour Nishikori consulted the trainer and doctor during the fourth round contest on Court Two and finally retired from the match at 6-1, 5-1 down. He confirmed it was the same injury which forced him out of the Halle tourament in the run-up to Wimbledon. "It got worse after the second round. I couldn't compete today," said Nishikori. Croatian ninth seed Cilic now faces either seven-time champion Roger Federer or Steve Johnson of the United States in Wednesday's quarter-finals. Nishikori's troubles were evident during the first set, when he found himself 5-0 down within 10 minutes, having won just two points as Cilic hit 10 aces. The Japanese did win one service game but by the end of the 16-minute set, he had hit just two winners to 18 from his opponent. He did manage to break Cilic early in the second set but could not stop the slump. In the breaks of play, 26-year-old Nishikori looked forlorn, with his head down, staring at the ground. He had his head in his hands after serving a double fault to go 4-1 down in the second set, after which his coaching staff -- including former French Open champion Michael Chang -- pleaded with him to call it quits. Nishikori called for the trainer and the doctor and was given some pills. After one more game he shook hands with his opponent. Nishikori hit just five winners in the match to 28 from Cilic, and his fastest serve was at only 103 miles per hour. He had managed to get just 35 per cent of his returns in play. Nishikori also withdrew from last year's Wimbledon in the second round with a left calf injury. He was bidding to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the first time in seven attempts -- the only one of the four majors where he has yet to make the last eight. Nishikori was bidding to become only the second Japanese man to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals, after Shuzo Matsuoka in 1995. He was the last Asian player left in the tournament after compatriot Misaki Doi was beaten in the women's last 16 by Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber in the preceding match on the 4,000-seater Court Two show court. Cilic, who beat Nishikori in the 2014 US Open final, has now reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals three times in a row, while Monday was the second time Nishikori had made it to the last 16. (AFP)

Japanese 5th seed Kei Nishikori pulls out of Wimbledon

Serena Williams needed just 51 minutes to clinch the 300th Grand Slam win of her career today as the defending champion made the Wimbledon last 16. 
 
The 34-year-old American brushed aside Germany&#39;s world number 43 Annika Beck 6-3, 6-0 on the back of 25 winners and seven aces and goes on to face long-time Russian rival Svetlana Kuznetsova. 
 
&quot;I thought it was good. I still want to get out to a little bit of a faster start but I was really focused and calm,&quot; said Williams, who is just six wins short of Martina Navratilova&#39;s Open Era record of 306 Slam wins. 
 
Williams has now won 82 matches at Wimbledon as she remains on course to equal Steffi Graf&#39;s Open Era record of 22 Grand Slam titles with her seventh Wimbledon crown. 
 
Rare middle Sunday play&nbsp; 
 
Williams took the starring role as play was held on the middle Sunday for only the fourth time in Wimbledon history, and the first time since 2004, as organisers tried to clear the backlog caused by days of rain. 
 
Two-time Grand Slam champion Kuznetsova reached the fourth round for the first time since 2008 despite becoming involved in a row with the umpire over coaching. 
 
The 31-year-old 13th seed battled back from 2-5 down in the final set to defeat US 18th seed Sloane Stephens 6-7 (1/7), 6-2, 8-6. 
 
But the Russian was hit with a code violation for coaching early in the final set which prompted a bitter exchange with umpire Marijana Veljovic. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m just doing my job,&quot; said the official. 
 
&quot;Well, you&#39;re not doing it very well,&quot; responded Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open champion and 2009 French Open winner. 
 
Russian 21st seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova made the last 16 of a Slam for the first time since the 2011 US Open by seeing off Swiss 11th seed Timea Bacsinszky 6-3, 6-2. 
 
Pavlyuchenkova will face US 27th seed Coco Vandeweghe, a quarter-finalist last year, who knocked out sixth-seeded Italian Roberta Vinci 6-3, 6-4. 
 
Vandeweghe is one of the in-form players on grass this year, winning at &#39;s-Hertogenbosch and making the semi-finals in Birmingham. 
 
Russia&#39;s Elena Vesnina made the fourth round for the first time in seven years by ending the run of US qualifier Julia Boserup, the world number 225, in straight sets, 7-5, 7-5. 
 
Vesnina will face doubles partner and close friend Ekaterina Makarova, who was a bridesmaid at her wedding last year, for a spot in the quarter-finals. 
 
Djokovic shock still resonates&nbsp; 
 
Today&#39;s programme on Centre Court concludes with German teenager Alexander Zverev facing 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych. 
 
Tenth seed Berdych is bidding to record his first win against a seed at Wimbledon since 2013. 
 
Zverev, who is through to the third round at Wimbledon for the first time, is hoping to record his first win against a seed at a Grand Slam. 
 
The men&#39;s draw is still reeling from Saturday&#39;s shock exit of defending champion Novak Djokovic in the third round. 
 
Andy Murray will now be the joint-favourite with Roger Federer to succeed Djokovic. 
 
Murray was not scheduled to play on Sunday but he will take a keen interest in the tie between Australian 15th seed Nick Kyrgios and Feliciano Lopez, the Spanish 22nd seed. 
 
Murray will face the winner of that third round clash which was one set apiece when play was halted for bad light Saturday. 
 
Kyrgios was at the centre of a new row on Sunday when he was heard labelling one of his own support team as &quot;retarded&quot;. 
 
The incident, picked up by microphones on Court One, occurred during the second set of his third round match. 
 
His compatriot Bernard Tomic got in trouble for describing himself as standing on court &quot;like a retard&quot; earlier in the tournament. 
 
On Court 12, French 32nd seed Lucas Pouille saw off former US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro 6-7 (7/4), 7-6 (8/6), 7-5, 6-1 in a tie held over from Saturday. 
 
Pouille next faces 19th seed Tomic in what will be his first appearance in the last 16 at a major. 
 
(AFP)

Williams has won 82 matches at Wimbledon, and remains on course to equal Steffi Graf's Open Era record of 22 Grand Slam titles

Serena Williams needed just 51 minutes to clinch the 300th Grand Slam win of her career today as the defending champion made the Wimbledon last 16. The 34-year-old American brushed aside Germany's world number 43 Annika Beck 6-3, 6-0 on the back of 25 winners and seven aces and goes on to face long-time Russian rival Svetlana Kuznetsova. "I thought it was good. I still want to get out to a little bit of a faster start but I was really focused and calm," said Williams, who is just six wins short of Martina Navratilova's Open Era record of 306 Slam wins. Williams has now won 82 matches at Wimbledon as she remains on course to equal Steffi Graf's Open Era record of 22 Grand Slam titles with her seventh Wimbledon crown. Rare middle Sunday play Williams took the starring role as play was held on the middle Sunday for only the fourth time in Wimbledon history, and the first time since 2004, as organisers tried to clear the backlog caused by days of rain. Two-time Grand Slam champion Kuznetsova reached the fourth round for the first time since 2008 despite becoming involved in a row with the umpire over coaching. The 31-year-old 13th seed battled back from 2-5 down in the final set to defeat US 18th seed Sloane Stephens 6-7 (1/7), 6-2, 8-6. But the Russian was hit with a code violation for coaching early in the final set which prompted a bitter exchange with umpire Marijana Veljovic. "I'm just doing my job," said the official. "Well, you're not doing it very well," responded Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open champion and 2009 French Open winner. Russian 21st seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova made the last 16 of a Slam for the first time since the 2011 US Open by seeing off Swiss 11th seed Timea Bacsinszky 6-3, 6-2. Pavlyuchenkova will face US 27th seed Coco Vandeweghe, a quarter-finalist last year, who knocked out sixth-seeded Italian Roberta Vinci 6-3, 6-4. Vandeweghe is one of the in-form players on grass this year, winning at 's-Hertogenbosch and making the semi-finals in Birmingham. Russia's Elena Vesnina made the fourth round for the first time in seven years by ending the run of US qualifier Julia Boserup, the world number 225, in straight sets, 7-5, 7-5. Vesnina will face doubles partner and close friend Ekaterina Makarova, who was a bridesmaid at her wedding last year, for a spot in the quarter-finals. Djokovic shock still resonates Today's programme on Centre Court concludes with German teenager Alexander Zverev facing 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych. Tenth seed Berdych is bidding to record his first win against a seed at Wimbledon since 2013. Zverev, who is through to the third round at Wimbledon for the first time, is hoping to record his first win against a seed at a Grand Slam. The men's draw is still reeling from Saturday's shock exit of defending champion Novak Djokovic in the third round. Andy Murray will now be the joint-favourite with Roger Federer to succeed Djokovic. Murray was not scheduled to play on Sunday but he will take a keen interest in the tie between Australian 15th seed Nick Kyrgios and Feliciano Lopez, the Spanish 22nd seed. Murray will face the winner of that third round clash which was one set apiece when play was halted for bad light Saturday. Kyrgios was at the centre of a new row on Sunday when he was heard labelling one of his own support team as "retarded". The incident, picked up by microphones on Court One, occurred during the second set of his third round match. His compatriot Bernard Tomic got in trouble for describing himself as standing on court "like a retard" earlier in the tournament. On Court 12, French 32nd seed Lucas Pouille saw off former US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro 6-7 (7/4), 7-6 (8/6), 7-5, 6-1 in a tie held over from Saturday. Pouille next faces 19th seed Tomic in what will be his first appearance in the last 16 at a major. (AFP)

Serena hits 300th Slam win

Seventh seed Richard Gasquet moved stealthily into the Wimbledon fourth round for the seventh time in his career today, finishing off Spain&#39;s Albert Ramos 2-6 7-6(5) 6-2 6-3. 
 
The French stylist required only 31 minutes to seal victory on Court 18, having moved two sets to one ahead the previous evening against the world number 36. 
 
Gasquet, who reached the semi-finals last year as he did in 2007, could face compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the last 16 if he beats American John Isner. 
 
His win was his 28th at Wimbledon, taking him to equal fifth on the all-time list for Frenchmen, level with Rene Lacoste. 
 
(Reuters)

Gasquet, who reached the semi-finals last year, could face his French compatriot Tsonga if he beats American John Isner

Seventh seed Richard Gasquet moved stealthily into the Wimbledon fourth round for the seventh time in his career today, finishing off Spain's Albert Ramos 2-6 7-6(5) 6-2 6-3. The French stylist required only 31 minutes to seal victory on Court 18, having moved two sets to one ahead the previous evening against the world number 36. Gasquet, who reached the semi-finals last year as he did in 2007, could face compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the last 16 if he beats American John Isner. His win was his 28th at Wimbledon, taking him to equal fifth on the all-time list for Frenchmen, level with Rene Lacoste. (Reuters)

Richard Gasquet eases into last 16 at Wimbledon

Andy Murray remains on course to capitalise on Novak Djokovic&#39;s stunning Wimbledon exit as the world number two eased into the last 16 with a 6-3, 7-5, 6-2 victory over Australia&#39;s John Millman on Saturday.

Murray has found it almost impossible to get the better of Djokovic over the last three years and suffered painful losses to the world number one in the Australian and French Open finals this year.

But the 29-year-old, beaten in 13 of his last 15 meetings with Djokovic, no longer has to worry about ending that frustrating streak after the Serb was condemned to his earliest Wimbledon defeat for eight years by American 28th seed Sam Querrey.

Murray will play Australian 15th seed Nick Kyrgios or Spain&#39;s Feliciano Lopez for a place in the quarter-finals.

(AFP)

Murray defeated Australia's John Millman on Saturday

Andy Murray remains on course to capitalise on Novak Djokovic's stunning Wimbledon exit as the world number two eased into the last 16 with a 6-3, 7-5, 6-2 victory over Australia's John Millman on Saturday. Murray has found it almost impossible to get the better of Djokovic over the last three years and suffered painful losses to the world number one in the Australian and French Open finals this year. But the 29-year-old, beaten in 13 of his last 15 meetings with Djokovic, no longer has to worry about ending that frustrating streak after the Serb was condemned to his earliest Wimbledon defeat for eight years by American 28th seed Sam Querrey. Murray will play Australian 15th seed Nick Kyrgios or Spain's Feliciano Lopez for a place in the quarter-finals. (AFP)

Wimbledon: Andy Murray enters last 16, on course to capitalise on  Djokovic's exit

Defending champion Novak Djokovic was beaten 7-6(6) 6-1 3-6 7-6(5) by American Sam Querrey in the Wimbledon third round on Saturday.

The Serbian top seed trailed by two sets overnight after the Court One match was interrupted by rain on Friday and there was no escape for the 29-year-old as Querrey, the 28th seed, completed a huge shock.

The Defeat, which ended the world number one&#39;s 30-match winning streak at grand slams, scuppered Djokovic&#39;s hopes of becoming the first man to win all four majors in a year since Rod Laver in 1969.

It was his first loss before the quarter-final of a grand slam tournament since 2009 when he also bowed out in the third round at the French Open. 
 
(Reuters)

Querrey has ended the world number one's dream of a calendar slam

Defending champion Novak Djokovic was beaten 7-6(6) 6-1 3-6 7-6(5) by American Sam Querrey in the Wimbledon third round on Saturday. The Serbian top seed trailed by two sets overnight after the Court One match was interrupted by rain on Friday and there was no escape for the 29-year-old as Querrey, the 28th seed, completed a huge shock. The Defeat, which ended the world number one's 30-match winning streak at grand slams, scuppered Djokovic's hopes of becoming the first man to win all four majors in a year since Rod Laver in 1969. It was his first loss before the quarter-final of a grand slam tournament since 2009 when he also bowed out in the third round at the French Open. (Reuters)

Defending champion Djokovic knocked out by Querrey at Wimbledon

Novak Djokovic made tennis history at Wimbledon on Wednesday when he notched up the most consecutive grand slam match victories in the Open Era, and said he aimed to continue his assault on the record books. 
 
The defending champion brushed past France&#39;s Adrian Mannarino 6-4 6-3 7-6(5) to book his place in the third round. It was his 30th consecutive grand slam match win, beating Rod Laver&#39;s record of 29 set in 1969-70. 
 
&quot;I have to be very grateful to have the opportunity to make the history of the sport,&quot; the world number one told reporters. &quot;Knowing that I won 30 in a row, it&#39;s very pleasing. I want to keep on going. Let&#39;s see where it takes me.&nbsp;Every single record that I managed to achieve in the last couple of years is important,&quot; he added. &quot;Every next one that I have a possibility to achieve is more motivation.&quot; 
 
Djokovic last lost a slam match when he was defeated by Stan Wawrinka in the 2015 French Open final. He now holds all four major titles, and has another historic mark in his sights. 
 
The 29-year-old Serb is aiming to become the first man since Laver in 1969 to achieve the calendar Grand Slam - winning the four major titles in a single season. 
 
Djokovic, seeking his third consecutive Wimbledon crown, played well within himself during the second-round match against Mannarino and was rarely troubled. 
 
The Frenchman, ranked 55, put up spirited resistance in the third set to force a tiebreak but was ultimately swept off Centre Court by his opponent&#39;s laser-guided groundstrokes. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

He has his eyes set on the calendar Grand Slam--winning the four major titles in a single season, last achieved by Laver in 1969

Novak Djokovic made tennis history at Wimbledon on Wednesday when he notched up the most consecutive grand slam match victories in the Open Era, and said he aimed to continue his assault on the record books. The defending champion brushed past France's Adrian Mannarino 6-4 6-3 7-6(5) to book his place in the third round. It was his 30th consecutive grand slam match win, beating Rod Laver's record of 29 set in 1969-70. "I have to be very grateful to have the opportunity to make the history of the sport," the world number one told reporters. "Knowing that I won 30 in a row, it's very pleasing. I want to keep on going. Let's see where it takes me. Every single record that I managed to achieve in the last couple of years is important," he added. "Every next one that I have a possibility to achieve is more motivation." Djokovic last lost a slam match when he was defeated by Stan Wawrinka in the 2015 French Open final. He now holds all four major titles, and has another historic mark in his sights. The 29-year-old Serb is aiming to become the first man since Laver in 1969 to achieve the calendar Grand Slam - winning the four major titles in a single season. Djokovic, seeking his third consecutive Wimbledon crown, played well within himself during the second-round match against Mannarino and was rarely troubled. The Frenchman, ranked 55, put up spirited resistance in the third set to force a tiebreak but was ultimately swept off Centre Court by his opponent's laser-guided groundstrokes. (Reuters)

Djokovic aims to keep breaking records

Controversial Australian Bernard Tomic was ordered to apologise today after he used the word &quot;retard&quot; in a Wimbledon press conference. 
 
Tomic&#39;s comments were branded as &quot;damaging and offensive&quot; by a learning disability charity as the world number 19 once again found himself in trouble. 
 
The Australian made the comments after being asked how he felt being made to wait for his first round opponent Fernando Verdasco to arrive on court for a match on Wednesday. 
 
&quot;I think he was up in the locker getting something taped. When I left, I thought he was leaving, so I just happened to walk out,&quot; said the 23-year-old. 
 
&quot;I did get to the court prior to him very early, and unfortunately I had to stand on court like a retard.&quot; 
 
The learning disability charity Mencap asked Tomic to say sorry. 
 
&quot;I&#39;d like the player to apologise and would encourage him to meet people with a learning disability so he can understand why the word is so damaging and offensive,&quot; Ciara Lawrence, who has a learning disability and is a campaigns support officer at Mencap, told the Press Association. 
 
&quot;Time and time again I hear this word used as if it has no effect. People clearly don&#39;t understand how upsetting and offensive this is to people with a learning disability like me. 
 
&quot;I am sick and tired of people in high-profile positions who are respected by the public using this word. It can make the public and people who look up to sports stars think it is okay to use words like this when it&#39;s not. 
 
&quot;It makes people with a learning disability seen not as people but as second-class citizens, and is no different to discriminating against someone who is gay or black.&quot; 
 
Tomic has been plagued by off-court controversies during his career. 
 
Most recently, he made headlines in Madrid when he turned his racquet the wrong way to face a match point against Fabio Fognini. 
 
Tomic later told his post-match news conference: &quot;I don&#39;t care about that match point. Would you care if you were 23 and worth over $10 million?&quot; 
 
In July last year, he was arrested in Miami after a wild party in a hotel penthouse suite. 
 
He was dropped from the Davis Cup team and has since opted out of the Olympics. 
 
(AFP)

The player made the offensive comment on being asked how he felt about waiting for his opponent Fernando Verdasco to arrive on court

Controversial Australian Bernard Tomic was ordered to apologise today after he used the word "retard" in a Wimbledon press conference. Tomic's comments were branded as "damaging and offensive" by a learning disability charity as the world number 19 once again found himself in trouble. The Australian made the comments after being asked how he felt being made to wait for his first round opponent Fernando Verdasco to arrive on court for a match on Wednesday. "I think he was up in the locker getting something taped. When I left, I thought he was leaving, so I just happened to walk out," said the 23-year-old. "I did get to the court prior to him very early, and unfortunately I had to stand on court like a retard." The learning disability charity Mencap asked Tomic to say sorry. "I'd like the player to apologise and would encourage him to meet people with a learning disability so he can understand why the word is so damaging and offensive," Ciara Lawrence, who has a learning disability and is a campaigns support officer at Mencap, told the Press Association. "Time and time again I hear this word used as if it has no effect. People clearly don't understand how upsetting and offensive this is to people with a learning disability like me. "I am sick and tired of people in high-profile positions who are respected by the public using this word. It can make the public and people who look up to sports stars think it is okay to use words like this when it's not. "It makes people with a learning disability seen not as people but as second-class citizens, and is no different to discriminating against someone who is gay or black." Tomic has been plagued by off-court controversies during his career. Most recently, he made headlines in Madrid when he turned his racquet the wrong way to face a match point against Fabio Fognini. Tomic later told his post-match news conference: "I don't care about that match point. Would you care if you were 23 and worth over $10 million?" In July last year, he was arrested in Miami after a wild party in a hotel penthouse suite. He was dropped from the Davis Cup team and has since opted out of the Olympics. (AFP)

Tomic told to apologise for 'retard' comment

Tomas Berdych battled the elements and a gritty display by his unseeded Croatian opponent Ivan Dodig on Wednesday before sealing a 7-6(5) 5-7 6-1 7-6(2) win. 
 
With the rain cutting a swathe through the programme for the second day running, the 10th-seeded Czech served for the match when play resumed after being called off with him leading 4-1 in the fourth set the previous day. 
 
But in damp windy conditions that gradually turned to steady drizzle, and led to play being called off on all but one of Wimbledon&#39;s other outside courts, Dodig broke serve and saved two match points before taking the match to a tiebreak. 
 
But Berdych, runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the All England Club in 2010 and contesting his 52nd consecutive grand slam, steadied his nerves to take the breaker 7-2 when he forced a backhand error from Dodig. 
 
The Czech, vocal in his criticism of how French Open officials managed rain interruptions at Roland Garros earlier this month, next plays unseeded German Benjamin Becker. 
 
Play on all outside courts was suspended until 1330 GMT, with further rain delays forecast into the evening. 
 
Centre Court action began on time with the roof closed. 
 
Defending champion Novak Djokovic will take on Frenchman Adrian Mannarino before seven-times champion Roger Federer plays Britain&#39;s world number 772 Marcus Willis. 
 
(Reuters)

Tenth seed Berdych next plays unseeded German Benjamin Becker

Tomas Berdych battled the elements and a gritty display by his unseeded Croatian opponent Ivan Dodig on Wednesday before sealing a 7-6(5) 5-7 6-1 7-6(2) win. With the rain cutting a swathe through the programme for the second day running, the 10th-seeded Czech served for the match when play resumed after being called off with him leading 4-1 in the fourth set the previous day. But in damp windy conditions that gradually turned to steady drizzle, and led to play being called off on all but one of Wimbledon's other outside courts, Dodig broke serve and saved two match points before taking the match to a tiebreak. But Berdych, runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the All England Club in 2010 and contesting his 52nd consecutive grand slam, steadied his nerves to take the breaker 7-2 when he forced a backhand error from Dodig. The Czech, vocal in his criticism of how French Open officials managed rain interruptions at Roland Garros earlier this month, next plays unseeded German Benjamin Becker. Play on all outside courts was suspended until 1330 GMT, with further rain delays forecast into the evening. Centre Court action began on time with the roof closed. Defending champion Novak Djokovic will take on Frenchman Adrian Mannarino before seven-times champion Roger Federer plays Britain's world number 772 Marcus Willis. (Reuters)

Berdych battles to four-set win at rain-hit Wimbledon

Seven-times Wimbledon champion Roger Federer has been warned - take 772nd-ranked British qualifier Marcus Willis lightly at your peril. 
 
&quot;I don&#39;t think Roger is going to have played anyone like Marcus. I know that for a fact. It will be tricky,&quot; Liam Broady, Willis&#39; fellow Britain, said on Tuesday. 
 
&quot;That&#39;s what Marcus always is. He makes opponents win matches. He serves well, serves big, puts pressure on. 
 
&quot;Obviously, Roger&#39;s the greatest player of all time. But personally, I think it will be a really interesting match-up.&quot; 
 
Willis, who almost quit to take up coaching and had to battle through six rounds of qualifying, stunned Lithuania&#39;s Ricardas Berankis, ranked 718 places above him, on Monday. 
 
Some of his play, including rarely seen sliced forehands, bamboozled Berankis. 
 
It set Wimbledon abuzz, but a repeat against 34-year-old 17-times grand slam champion Federer would seem barely credible even for the most far-fetched Hollywood plot. 
 
Or would it? 
 
&quot;Stranger things have happened, I know that,&quot; Broady, beaten 6-2 6-3 6-4 by world number two Andy Murray, said. 
 
&quot;He&#39;s so tricky, he&#39;s so talented. He&#39;s very aware of what he&#39;s doing on the court, how to make it awkward for people.&quot; 
 
Murray was also asked about Willis&#39; chances. 
 
&quot;Amazing things do happen in sport sometimes,&quot; Murray, who pointed to England&#39;s defeat by Iceland at Euro 2016, said. 
 
&quot;Obviously, Roger&#39;s a massive, massive favourite going into the match. I would expect him to win fairly comfortably. 
 
&quot;But Marcus&#39; game style, it&#39;s pretty old-school. He serve-and-volleys a lot. Uses a lot of slice. Hits the ball fairly flat. Has great hands. Great feel. 
 
&quot;Very few guys play like that now. It&#39;s just amazing, an amazing opportunity for him.&quot; 
 
Perhaps the best advice came from Broady though after his own Centre Court debut against Murray. 
 
&quot;By the end of the second set, most of the third, it was just kind of a match against another guy,&quot; the 22-year-old said. 
 
&quot;Sometimes you watch on TV. You think that the top players in the world are superhuman. They&#39;re so good at what they do that you forget they&#39;re just men. Obviously they&#39;re spectacular at tennis, but they are just men.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

Marcus Willis had to battle through six rounds of qualifying and stunned Lithuania's Ricardas Berankis, ranked 718 places above him

Seven-times Wimbledon champion Roger Federer has been warned - take 772nd-ranked British qualifier Marcus Willis lightly at your peril. "I don't think Roger is going to have played anyone like Marcus. I know that for a fact. It will be tricky," Liam Broady, Willis' fellow Britain, said on Tuesday. "That's what Marcus always is. He makes opponents win matches. He serves well, serves big, puts pressure on. "Obviously, Roger's the greatest player of all time. But personally, I think it will be a really interesting match-up." Willis, who almost quit to take up coaching and had to battle through six rounds of qualifying, stunned Lithuania's Ricardas Berankis, ranked 718 places above him, on Monday. Some of his play, including rarely seen sliced forehands, bamboozled Berankis. It set Wimbledon abuzz, but a repeat against 34-year-old 17-times grand slam champion Federer would seem barely credible even for the most far-fetched Hollywood plot. Or would it? "Stranger things have happened, I know that," Broady, beaten 6-2 6-3 6-4 by world number two Andy Murray, said. "He's so tricky, he's so talented. He's very aware of what he's doing on the court, how to make it awkward for people." Murray was also asked about Willis' chances. "Amazing things do happen in sport sometimes," Murray, who pointed to England's defeat by Iceland at Euro 2016, said. "Obviously, Roger's a massive, massive favourite going into the match. I would expect him to win fairly comfortably. "But Marcus' game style, it's pretty old-school. He serve-and-volleys a lot. Uses a lot of slice. Hits the ball fairly flat. Has great hands. Great feel. "Very few guys play like that now. It's just amazing, an amazing opportunity for him." Perhaps the best advice came from Broady though after his own Centre Court debut against Murray. "By the end of the second set, most of the third, it was just kind of a match against another guy," the 22-year-old said. "Sometimes you watch on TV. You think that the top players in the world are superhuman. They're so good at what they do that you forget they're just men. Obviously they're spectacular at tennis, but they are just men." (Reuters)

Roger Federer warned to expect the unexpected from Willis

Tara Moore praised the influence of her mind trainer Tony Lekic after the Briton registered a first ever singles victory at a grand slam tournament when she beat Alison Van Uytvanck in the opening round at Wimbledon on Tuesday. 
 
Coming into the grasscourt tournament ranked 227th in the world, the wildcard overcame the Belgian ranked 100 places above her 6-3 6-2 to set up a second round encounter against Russian 13th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s been a great benefit. He doesn&#39;t just help me with on-court stuff. There&#39;s a lot of off-court stuff that people don&#39;t see, a lot of behind the scenes things that are tough to handle for a tennis player,&quot; Moore told British media. 
 
&quot;We travel a lot. We&#39;re away from loved ones and friends a lot. That&#39;s really difficult. Tennis is so difficult without all the little things. He&#39;s definitely there to help with the little things. That&#39;s been monumental for me.&quot; 
 
Moore said she also drew inspiration from 772nd-ranked British qualifier Marcus Willis&#39; win over Lithuanian world number 54 Ricardas Berankis, which set up a second round encounter against seven-time champion Roger Federer. 
 
&quot;I was watching, cheering and screaming at the screen. Willis has done so great. For sure it was an inspiration,&quot; Moore said. 
 
&quot;The British players are very supportive of each other and push each other on. I definitely think (British) tennis is on the up.&quot; 
 
The 23-year-old will also team up with Switzerland&#39;s Conny Perrin for a women&#39;s doubles first round clash against Colombian Mariana Duque-Marino and Puerto Rican Monica Puig today. 
 
(Reuters) 
 
&nbsp;

Tara Moore is the first British woman to reach the second round at Wimbeldon

Tara Moore praised the influence of her mind trainer Tony Lekic after the Briton registered a first ever singles victory at a grand slam tournament when she beat Alison Van Uytvanck in the opening round at Wimbledon on Tuesday. Coming into the grasscourt tournament ranked 227th in the world, the wildcard overcame the Belgian ranked 100 places above her 6-3 6-2 to set up a second round encounter against Russian 13th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova. "It's been a great benefit. He doesn't just help me with on-court stuff. There's a lot of off-court stuff that people don't see, a lot of behind the scenes things that are tough to handle for a tennis player," Moore told British media. "We travel a lot. We're away from loved ones and friends a lot. That's really difficult. Tennis is so difficult without all the little things. He's definitely there to help with the little things. That's been monumental for me." Moore said she also drew inspiration from 772nd-ranked British qualifier Marcus Willis' win over Lithuanian world number 54 Ricardas Berankis, which set up a second round encounter against seven-time champion Roger Federer. "I was watching, cheering and screaming at the screen. Willis has done so great. For sure it was an inspiration," Moore said. "The British players are very supportive of each other and push each other on. I definitely think (British) tennis is on the up." The 23-year-old will also team up with Switzerland's Conny Perrin for a women's doubles first round clash against Colombian Mariana Duque-Marino and Puerto Rican Monica Puig today. (Reuters)

Moore hails mind trainer after Wimbledon breakthrough

France&#39;s Marion Bartoli won her first and only major back in 2013, beating Sabine Lisicki to claim the women&#39;s singles title at Wimbledon. She retired almost immediately after that feat. It&#39;s 2016 now and she&#39;s back in the news once more. No new titles in her bag, or a return from retirement on the cards, and yet, Bartoli finds herself being discussed and dissected on social media as if she were still putting in title-winning performances or signing on as a coach with a top player.&nbsp; 
 
Bartoli&#39;s return to the public domain is for reasons unrelated to tennis. She&#39;s back in the news because, get this, she&#39;s lost weight. If some reports are to be believed, the former top ten player has dropped nearly 20 kilos in the last three years and Bartoli&#39;s new frame has brought with it new fame. &nbsp; 
 
Images of a much-thinner Bartoli than the one we remember holding the Wimbledon shield aloft in 2013 are doing the rounds on the interweb. I&#39;d be lying if I say I didn&#39;t do a double take when I saw some of the photographs. The French woman does look starkly different from three years ago. But it&#39;s the comments that are proliferating at breakneck speed that are more eye-catching. &nbsp; 
 
Expressions of concern, downright disgust and worries of anorexia are only some of the reactions the &quot;then and now&quot; images have generated. But, Bartoli isn&#39;t the first woman in sports to find herself being scrutinised for her body and looks. In fact, she&#39;s already been in the spotlight for her physique before. Back then Bartoli was considered too heavy by some and tweets referring to the player often included choice epithets like fatty, ugly and pig. &nbsp; 
 
However, it wasn&#39;t just couch critics who were poking fun at Bartoli&#39;s fuller figure. Following her win at Wimbledon she received some particularly misogynistic comments from BBC commentator John Inverdale. Instead of simply lauding the French woman for what she had achieved (a grand slam singles title no less) Inverdale waxed eloquent on, and I paraphrase here: how Bartoli&#39;s father probably told her she would never have Maria Sharapova&#39;s looks or legs and probably learned early on that she would need to compensate in some way. &nbsp;&nbsp; 
 
Inverdale was relieved of his duties, but the scrutiny of women in sport seems to continue unabated. Serena Williams had her &#39;been there, done that&#39; moment last year when her eyebrows caused offense for being too bushy. By the way, the Twitter storm over Serena&#39;s &#39;caterpillar-like&#39; eyebrows broke around the time she picked up her 21st grand slam singles title. So, whether you have one major like Bartoli, or twenty more like Williams, if you&#39;re a woman, it&#39;s probably not going to shield you from unwarranted comments on your body, hair, choice of outfit, or anything really.&nbsp; 
 
Unfortunately the stark difference in attitudes to women&#39;s and men&#39;s performances on a sports field are not limited to those of spectators and commentators. Earlier this year, the Chief Executive of the Indian Wells Masters tournament Raymond Moore provoked criticism for his distatsteful comments on women&#39;s tennis. He suggested that the Women&#39;s Tennis Association (WTA) and female players should be grateful to men&#39;s tennis since they &quot;ride on the coat-tails&quot; of male players. He went so far as to propose that women&#39;s players should go down on their knees every night in gratitude to players like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for the very fact that they were born.&nbsp; 
 
Tennis is one of the few sports where there is a certain gender parity when it comes to prize money with all four Grand Slams awarding equal rewards to winners. However, shortly after Moore&#39;s comments came to light, men&#39;s singles world number one Novak Djokovic suggested that it was right for men to receive a larger purse because men&#39;s tennis attracts more viewers. &nbsp; 
 
Men&#39;s tennis may garner more eyeballs, but how much does that have to do with interest from spectators and how much from television schedules that give more air-time to men&#39;s matches? Seventy-six per cent of BBC&#39;s coverage of the first week of Wimbledon in 2015 was dedicated to men&#39;s tennis. That aside, if fewer people do in fact tune in to or attend women&#39;s matches does it also demand that women put in lesser effort in to training and performance as a result?&nbsp; 
 
The latest fracas with Bartoli&#39;s new physique is telling of our attitudes toward women in sport. The expectations from men and women are vastly different and any deviation from those standards is dealt with harshly. However, while men are, for the most part, judged on the basis of their performance on the field, women are open to far harsher comments that makes unwarranted criticism of any aspect of their lives fair game. &nbsp;

The latest fracas with Bartoli's new physique speaks of our attitude towards women in sport

France's Marion Bartoli won her first and only major back in 2013, beating Sabine Lisicki to claim the women's singles title at Wimbledon. She retired almost immediately after that feat. It's 2016 now and she's back in the news once more. No new titles in her bag, or a return from retirement on the cards, and yet, Bartoli finds herself being discussed and dissected on social media as if she were still putting in title-winning performances or signing on as a coach with a top player. Bartoli's return to the public domain is for reasons unrelated to tennis. She's back in the news because, get this, she's lost weight. If some reports are to be believed, the former top ten player has dropped nearly 20 kilos in the last three years and Bartoli's new frame has brought with it new fame. Images of a much-thinner Bartoli than the one we remember holding the Wimbledon shield aloft in 2013 are doing the rounds on the interweb. I'd be lying if I say I didn't do a double take when I saw some of the photographs. The French woman does look starkly different from three years ago. But it's the comments that are proliferating at breakneck speed that are more eye-catching. Expressions of concern, downright disgust and worries of anorexia are only some of the reactions the "then and now" images have generated. But, Bartoli isn't the first woman in sports to find herself being scrutinised for her body and looks. In fact, she's already been in the spotlight for her physique before. Back then Bartoli was considered too heavy by some and tweets referring to the player often included choice epithets like fatty, ugly and pig. However, it wasn't just couch critics who were poking fun at Bartoli's fuller figure. Following her win at Wimbledon she received some particularly misogynistic comments from BBC commentator John Inverdale. Instead of simply lauding the French woman for what she had achieved (a grand slam singles title no less) Inverdale waxed eloquent on, and I paraphrase here: how Bartoli's father probably told her she would never have Maria Sharapova's looks or legs and probably learned early on that she would need to compensate in some way. Inverdale was relieved of his duties, but the scrutiny of women in sport seems to continue unabated. Serena Williams had her 'been there, done that' moment last year when her eyebrows caused offense for being too bushy. By the way, the Twitter storm over Serena's 'caterpillar-like' eyebrows broke around the time she picked up her 21st grand slam singles title. So, whether you have one major like Bartoli, or twenty more like Williams, if you're a woman, it's probably not going to shield you from unwarranted comments on your body, hair, choice of outfit, or anything really. Unfortunately the stark difference in attitudes to women's and men's performances on a sports field are not limited to those of spectators and commentators. Earlier this year, the Chief Executive of the Indian Wells Masters tournament Raymond Moore provoked criticism for his distatsteful comments on women's tennis. He suggested that the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and female players should be grateful to men's tennis since they "ride on the coat-tails" of male players. He went so far as to propose that women's players should go down on their knees every night in gratitude to players like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for the very fact that they were born. Tennis is one of the few sports where there is a certain gender parity when it comes to prize money with all four Grand Slams awarding equal rewards to winners. However, shortly after Moore's comments came to light, men's singles world number one Novak Djokovic suggested that it was right for men to receive a larger purse because men's tennis attracts more viewers. Men's tennis may garner more eyeballs, but how much does that have to do with interest from spectators and how much from television schedules that give more air-time to men's matches? Seventy-six per cent of BBC's coverage of the first week of Wimbledon in 2015 was dedicated to men's tennis. That aside, if fewer people do in fact tune in to or attend women's matches does it also demand that women put in lesser effort in to training and performance as a result? The latest fracas with Bartoli's new physique is telling of our attitudes toward women in sport. The expectations from men and women are vastly different and any deviation from those standards is dealt with harshly. However, while men are, for the most part, judged on the basis of their performance on the field, women are open to far harsher comments that makes unwarranted criticism of any aspect of their lives fair game.

Marion Bartoli and the Body Politic(s)

&nbsp;As she has done for most of the past 18 summers, Venus Williams on Monday took a large, languid stride into the second round of Wimbledon. 
 
The oldest woman in the main singles draw, five-times champion Williams was at times sublime as she beat Croatian Donna Vekic 7-6(3) 6-4 on a sunny Court One. 
 
While the full Williams armoury had been on display, it was her mental strength which stood out -- perhaps no surprise given she is playing her 71st grand slam singles tournament, a record among current female players. 
 
Vekic produced startling groundstrokes at times, but eighth seed Williams maintained her composure, increasing the pressure when things got tight as her opponent wilted in the spotlight. 
 
There cannot be too many grand slam years left for Williams, who celebrated her 36th birthday this month, but she showed more than enough on Day One to suggest she could again go deep in her favourite major. 
 
(Reuters)

Donna Vekic produced startling groundstrokes, but eighth seed Williams beat her by 7-6(3) 6-4

As she has done for most of the past 18 summers, Venus Williams on Monday took a large, languid stride into the second round of Wimbledon. The oldest woman in the main singles draw, five-times champion Williams was at times sublime as she beat Croatian Donna Vekic 7-6(3) 6-4 on a sunny Court One. While the full Williams armoury had been on display, it was her mental strength which stood out -- perhaps no surprise given she is playing her 71st grand slam singles tournament, a record among current female players. Vekic produced startling groundstrokes at times, but eighth seed Williams maintained her composure, increasing the pressure when things got tight as her opponent wilted in the spotlight. There cannot be too many grand slam years left for Williams, who celebrated her 36th birthday this month, but she showed more than enough on Day One to suggest she could again go deep in her favourite major. (Reuters)

Venus vaults Vekic at Wimbledon

World number one Novak Djokovic and 17-time major winner Roger Federer get Wimbledon under way today with history beckoning for the two Grand Slam A-listers. 
 
Top seed Djokovic is halfway to the first calendar Grand Slam since 1969 after ending his agonising wait for a maiden French Open crown earlier this month. 
 
The 29-year-old defending champion currently holds all four majors and if he wins a third successive Wimbledon title and fourth in all, he will become just the second man in history to win five successive Slams. 
 
Only Don Budge, who won six straight from 1937 Wimbledon to the 1938 US Championships, has achieved the feat. 
 
Djokovic is such a hot favourite to triumph on July 10 that women&#39;s champion Serena Williams is already tipping the Serb for more greatness. 
 
&quot;I think he&#39;ll get it easy,&quot; said the American who will begin her bid for an Open era record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam on Tuesday. 
 
Djokovic has won six of the last eight Grand Slams, taking him to a career tally of 12 - within two of Rafael Nadal`s mark and five behind Federer`s record. 
 
Djokovic takes on British wild card James Ward in the opening match on Centre Court. 
 
Ward, the 29-year-old son of a London taxi driver, is ranked at 177 in the world and made the third round last year with Australian coach Darren Tandy. 
 
But Tandy was diagnosed with cancer of the colon later in the year and died on Christmas Eve. 
 
&quot;It`s been a tough time. Obviously the end of last year was very difficult,&quot; Ward told the Press Association. 
 
&quot;He was my tennis coach so every time I play tennis it reminds me of him.&quot; 
 
Federer, whose last major triumph was at Wimbledon in 2012 when he won his seventh title at the All England Club, against Argentina`s world number 51 Guido Pella. 
 
Federer, 34, has been runner-up to Djokovic for the last two years and is attempting to become the oldest ever Wimbledon champion in modern times. 
 
But the Swiss has been dogged by knee and back problems this year and his injury-enforced withdrawal from the French Open ended his streak of 65 successive Grand Slam appearances stretching back to 1999. 
 
He has since suffered semi-final losses on grass at Stuttgart and Halle, the last of which against Alexander Zverev was his first against a teenager in 10 years. 
 
Federer`s failure to win a title in 2016 means he will enter Wimbledon on his longest trophy drought since 2000.&quot;Clearly I`m not thinking of the title right away,&quot; said the Swiss when asked to assess his chances. 
 
&quot;Novak or Andy (Murray) are the big favourites.&quot; 
 
Pella, 26, was forced to retire from his first round match on his Wimbledon debut in 2013 while he fell in qualifying last year. 
 
The Centre Court programme also sees women`s second seed and French Open champion Garbine Muguruza taking on Camila Giorgi, the world number 68 from Italy. 
 
Muguruza was runner-up to Williams last year. Giorgi reached the fourth round in 2012. 
 
On Court One, 36-year-old Venus Williams, seeded eighth and a five-time champion, takes on Croatia`s Donna Vekic. 
 
Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori, who has yet to get beyond the fourth round, takes on big-serving Australian Sam Groth. 
 
Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber faces Britain`s Laura Robson in the same arena. 
 
Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic, with John McEnroe in his corner, meets Spain`s Pablo Carreno Busta as he looks to improve on his 2014 semi-final showing. 
 
Meanwhile, armed police will patrol the tournament, both inside and outside the grounds while organisers have also increased the numbers of their private security staff. 
 
Armed officers were also used at Wimbledon last year but on a lower scale on the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 attacks in London. 
 
&quot;(There will be) significant numbers of officers patrolling the local area, firearms officers and a highly mobile reserve that can respond to emerging incidents,&quot; said a police spokesman. 
 
&quot;Officers will be working in uniform and in plain clothes during the event.&quot; 
 
Rain is also expected in the first week but forecasters are confident showers will pass by the time play gets under way. 
 
(AFP)

Roger Federer has been runner-up to Djokovic for the Past two years and is attempting to become the oldest ever Wimbledon champion

World number one Novak Djokovic and 17-time major winner Roger Federer get Wimbledon under way today with history beckoning for the two Grand Slam A-listers. Top seed Djokovic is halfway to the first calendar Grand Slam since 1969 after ending his agonising wait for a maiden French Open crown earlier this month. The 29-year-old defending champion currently holds all four majors and if he wins a third successive Wimbledon title and fourth in all, he will become just the second man in history to win five successive Slams. Only Don Budge, who won six straight from 1937 Wimbledon to the 1938 US Championships, has achieved the feat. Djokovic is such a hot favourite to triumph on July 10 that women's champion Serena Williams is already tipping the Serb for more greatness. "I think he'll get it easy," said the American who will begin her bid for an Open era record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam on Tuesday. Djokovic has won six of the last eight Grand Slams, taking him to a career tally of 12 - within two of Rafael Nadal`s mark and five behind Federer`s record. Djokovic takes on British wild card James Ward in the opening match on Centre Court. Ward, the 29-year-old son of a London taxi driver, is ranked at 177 in the world and made the third round last year with Australian coach Darren Tandy. But Tandy was diagnosed with cancer of the colon later in the year and died on Christmas Eve. "It`s been a tough time. Obviously the end of last year was very difficult," Ward told the Press Association. "He was my tennis coach so every time I play tennis it reminds me of him." Federer, whose last major triumph was at Wimbledon in 2012 when he won his seventh title at the All England Club, against Argentina`s world number 51 Guido Pella. Federer, 34, has been runner-up to Djokovic for the last two years and is attempting to become the oldest ever Wimbledon champion in modern times. But the Swiss has been dogged by knee and back problems this year and his injury-enforced withdrawal from the French Open ended his streak of 65 successive Grand Slam appearances stretching back to 1999. He has since suffered semi-final losses on grass at Stuttgart and Halle, the last of which against Alexander Zverev was his first against a teenager in 10 years. Federer`s failure to win a title in 2016 means he will enter Wimbledon on his longest trophy drought since 2000."Clearly I`m not thinking of the title right away," said the Swiss when asked to assess his chances. "Novak or Andy (Murray) are the big favourites." Pella, 26, was forced to retire from his first round match on his Wimbledon debut in 2013 while he fell in qualifying last year. The Centre Court programme also sees women`s second seed and French Open champion Garbine Muguruza taking on Camila Giorgi, the world number 68 from Italy. Muguruza was runner-up to Williams last year. Giorgi reached the fourth round in 2012. On Court One, 36-year-old Venus Williams, seeded eighth and a five-time champion, takes on Croatia`s Donna Vekic. Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori, who has yet to get beyond the fourth round, takes on big-serving Australian Sam Groth. Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber faces Britain`s Laura Robson in the same arena. Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic, with John McEnroe in his corner, meets Spain`s Pablo Carreno Busta as he looks to improve on his 2014 semi-final showing. Meanwhile, armed police will patrol the tournament, both inside and outside the grounds while organisers have also increased the numbers of their private security staff. Armed officers were also used at Wimbledon last year but on a lower scale on the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 attacks in London. "(There will be) significant numbers of officers patrolling the local area, firearms officers and a highly mobile reserve that can respond to emerging incidents," said a police spokesman. "Officers will be working in uniform and in plain clothes during the event." Rain is also expected in the first week but forecasters are confident showers will pass by the time play gets under way. (AFP)

History on line as Djokovic, Federer get Wimbledon under way

It was not quite the triple bagel that Novak Djokovic was aiming for during the opening 41 minutes of his first-round match, but the Serbian is unlikely to be too disappointed after he beat Britain&#39;s James Ward 6-0 7-6(3) 6-4 at Wimbledon today. 
 
The holder of all four grand slam titles appeared to be hurtling towards his 29th successive win at a major when he opened his Wimbledon defence by jumping out to a 6-0 3-0 lead. 
 
But Ward, the son of a London black cab driver, did not want to make a quick getaway on his Centre Court debut and held both arms aloft after finally getting a game against his name on the scoreboard. 
 
The 177th-ranked wildcard went on a roll as he won three games on the trot but despite his fightback, he simply did not have enough weapons to stop Djokovic from setting up a second- round showdown with Frenchman Adrian Mannarino. 
 
(Reuters)

Britain's James Ward, despite his fightback, did not have enough weapons to stop Djokovic from setting up a second-round showdown

It was not quite the triple bagel that Novak Djokovic was aiming for during the opening 41 minutes of his first-round match, but the Serbian is unlikely to be too disappointed after he beat Britain's James Ward 6-0 7-6(3) 6-4 at Wimbledon today. The holder of all four grand slam titles appeared to be hurtling towards his 29th successive win at a major when he opened his Wimbledon defence by jumping out to a 6-0 3-0 lead. But Ward, the son of a London black cab driver, did not want to make a quick getaway on his Centre Court debut and held both arms aloft after finally getting a game against his name on the scoreboard. The 177th-ranked wildcard went on a roll as he won three games on the trot but despite his fightback, he simply did not have enough weapons to stop Djokovic from setting up a second- round showdown with Frenchman Adrian Mannarino. (Reuters)

Djokovic beats Ward by 6-0 7-6 6-4, makes solid start to Wimbledon title defence

Andy Murray once tried to make his international team mate Liam Broady&#39;s life a misery by ensuring his first speech at a Davis Cup welcome dinner was a disaster. 
 
Now the world number two is planning to make Broady&#39;s life just as uncomfortable in the unforgiving world of grand slam tennis. 
 
For the first time in 56 matches over 11 years, Britain&#39;s twice grand slam champion Murray finds himself drawn at Wimbledon against a fellow countryman and he admits that playing his 22-year-old colleague will feel &quot;weird&quot;. 
 
For a former champion long buoyed by support from the home fans, Murray could instead find the showcourt crowds cheering for a lad from Stockport &nbsp;- home town of Murray&#39;s only rival for the accolade of Britain&#39;s best player ever, Fred Perry &nbsp;- when they play on Tuesday. 
 
Broady reckons he is playing the part of Leicester City, the 5,000-1 no-hopers who went on to win the Premier League. Barring one thing; he believes he&#39;s probably an even bigger outsider to pull off one of Wimbledon&#39;s great sensations. 
 
It has all left the tournament&#39;s second favourite Murray admitting he does not quite know what to expect with their first round match. 
 
&quot;It will be interesting. Obviously never happened before, not for me anyway,&quot; Murray told a news conference on Saturday. &quot;Liam&#39;s a good guy. Works hard. I would imagine we&#39;d probably play on one of the big courts, so a big experience for him, as well. Yeah, look forward to it but, I mean, it will be a bit strange.&quot; 
 
Broady inhabits a different world to Murray, scrabbling around in Challenger and Futures tournaments to make his way in the game as the world number 234. 
 
Yet on the Davis Cup beat, they have got to know each other pretty well. When he first joined the British team, Broady recalled, Murray was vociferous in trying to ensure he went through the newcomers&#39; initiation ceremony of having to make a speech at his first welcome dinner. 
 
&quot;He had obviously never been to one of the dinners before, so wasn&#39;t sure exactly what he should say,&quot; Murray smiled. &quot;We were telling him the wrong things to say and hoping he would stand up and actually say them.&quot; Disappointingly for him, though, Broady &quot;did fine&quot;. 
 
However fine he is on Tuesday, though, he will only be a launch pad for Murray to kick off a campaign in which, even Roger Federer concedes, the Scot and Novak Djokovic are the outstanding favourites. 
 
Djokovic won their last battle in the French Open final, leaving Murray able once again only to marvel at the world number one&#39;s extraordinary level of excellence. 
 
&quot;His consistency and drive over the last few years has been incredible. I don&#39;t know if that&#39;s ever happened before, where someone&#39;s pretty much gone over a year consistently reaching the finals of tournaments,&quot; said Murray. 
 
&quot;In an individual sport, if you have a really bad day, wake up, you feel terrible, you lose at this level. He hasn&#39;t had really any of those results or those matches over the last few years. That&#39;s very impressive.&quot; 
 
To break the Serb&#39;s dominance, Murray has just been reunited with Ivan Lendl, the former Czech great who coached him to Wimbledon glory in 2013. 
 
Their first week saw Murray lift a record fifth Queen&#39;s title, leaving the number two seed to enthuse: &quot;It actually gives a bit of extra confidence, because I know last time we worked together, it was very successful. I trust in what he says.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

For the first time in 11 years, Britain's twice grand slam champion Murray finds himself drawn at Wimbledon against a fellow countryman

Andy Murray once tried to make his international team mate Liam Broady's life a misery by ensuring his first speech at a Davis Cup welcome dinner was a disaster. Now the world number two is planning to make Broady's life just as uncomfortable in the unforgiving world of grand slam tennis. For the first time in 56 matches over 11 years, Britain's twice grand slam champion Murray finds himself drawn at Wimbledon against a fellow countryman and he admits that playing his 22-year-old colleague will feel "weird". For a former champion long buoyed by support from the home fans, Murray could instead find the showcourt crowds cheering for a lad from Stockport - home town of Murray's only rival for the accolade of Britain's best player ever, Fred Perry - when they play on Tuesday. Broady reckons he is playing the part of Leicester City, the 5,000-1 no-hopers who went on to win the Premier League. Barring one thing; he believes he's probably an even bigger outsider to pull off one of Wimbledon's great sensations. It has all left the tournament's second favourite Murray admitting he does not quite know what to expect with their first round match. "It will be interesting. Obviously never happened before, not for me anyway," Murray told a news conference on Saturday. "Liam's a good guy. Works hard. I would imagine we'd probably play on one of the big courts, so a big experience for him, as well. Yeah, look forward to it but, I mean, it will be a bit strange." Broady inhabits a different world to Murray, scrabbling around in Challenger and Futures tournaments to make his way in the game as the world number 234. Yet on the Davis Cup beat, they have got to know each other pretty well. When he first joined the British team, Broady recalled, Murray was vociferous in trying to ensure he went through the newcomers' initiation ceremony of having to make a speech at his first welcome dinner. "He had obviously never been to one of the dinners before, so wasn't sure exactly what he should say," Murray smiled. "We were telling him the wrong things to say and hoping he would stand up and actually say them." Disappointingly for him, though, Broady "did fine". However fine he is on Tuesday, though, he will only be a launch pad for Murray to kick off a campaign in which, even Roger Federer concedes, the Scot and Novak Djokovic are the outstanding favourites. Djokovic won their last battle in the French Open final, leaving Murray able once again only to marvel at the world number one's extraordinary level of excellence. "His consistency and drive over the last few years has been incredible. I don't know if that's ever happened before, where someone's pretty much gone over a year consistently reaching the finals of tournaments," said Murray. "In an individual sport, if you have a really bad day, wake up, you feel terrible, you lose at this level. He hasn't had really any of those results or those matches over the last few years. That's very impressive." To break the Serb's dominance, Murray has just been reunited with Ivan Lendl, the former Czech great who coached him to Wimbledon glory in 2013. Their first week saw Murray lift a record fifth Queen's title, leaving the number two seed to enthuse: "It actually gives a bit of extra confidence, because I know last time we worked together, it was very successful. I trust in what he says." (Reuters)

Andy Murray plans harsh initiation ceremony for Broady

On court Novak Djokovic is taking tennis to extraordinary new levels with his single-minded obsession with winning. Off it the Serbian is more than happy to share power. 
 
The 29-year-old will begin his attempt to win a fourth Wimbledon title on Monday when he plays British wildcard James Ward on Centre Court,12 months after claiming a second successive title by beating Roger Federer. 
 
While nothing will distract him from that goal, the dominant Serbian also knows that however big the gap is between himself and his rivals and it is a yawning chasm that no player is bigger than the sport. 
 
At his pre-tournament news conference at Wimbledon today, the world number one confirmed he had re-joined the 12-man ATP Players Council, along with chief rival Andy Murray and Murray&#39;s brother Jamie, the world&#39;s top doubles player. 
 
It is a responsibility Djokovic will apply himself to with the same devotion as his career for the next two years as tennis wrestles with the kind of doping and corruption scandals that have afflicted world sport. 
 
&quot;I&#39;ve been very flattered and humbled to be elected by my colleagues,&quot; Djokovic told reporters. 
 
&quot;The way I see it is that I managed to gain trust from players, which is very important to me. I have been part of the Player Council for three years earlier in my career. I`ve been familiar with the way the system works. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m hoping I can contribute to the evolution and to the betterment of our sport in every aspect.&quot; 
 
There is little argument that he has taken tennis to new levels of perfection since losing to Murray in the 2013 final here. 
 
Since then he has won six of the 11 grand slam titles on offer, taking his tally to 12 overall. 
 
In beating Murray at Roland Garros earlier this month he became the first man in 47 years to hold all four majors. 
 
He also won the ATP World Tour Finals in November and will have his eye on Olympic gold in August and probably the Davis Cup too. 
 
His immediate focus though is on a smooth opening to his Wimbledon campaign having chosen again not to play any grasscourt tournaments in the run-up. 
 
&quot;This year is quite different from previous years because I`m coming in with a Roland Garros title,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;That gives me, obviously, a lot of confidence. I&#39;ve played a lot of points in the practice sessions these four or five days, trying to be on the grass as much as I can. So I`m really keen on getting on the court.&quot; 
 
Djokovic, who beat Federer in the last two Wimbledon finals, could face a tough path to a hat-trick. 
 
Big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic is a potential quarter-final opponent with Federer possible in the semis. 
 
Ward is unlikely to pose too many problems, although Djokovic is well aware that the crowd will be rooting for his opponent when play begins on Monday. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s going to be the first match on the untouched grass,&quot; he said. &quot; That&#39;s probably one of the most special tennis matches that you get to experience as a tennis player. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m looking forward to that. Obviously I know that he doesn`t have much to lose.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

The 29-year-old will begin his attempt to win a fourth Wimbledon title on Monday when he plays British wildcard James Ward on Centre Court

On court Novak Djokovic is taking tennis to extraordinary new levels with his single-minded obsession with winning. Off it the Serbian is more than happy to share power. The 29-year-old will begin his attempt to win a fourth Wimbledon title on Monday when he plays British wildcard James Ward on Centre Court,12 months after claiming a second successive title by beating Roger Federer. While nothing will distract him from that goal, the dominant Serbian also knows that however big the gap is between himself and his rivals and it is a yawning chasm that no player is bigger than the sport. At his pre-tournament news conference at Wimbledon today, the world number one confirmed he had re-joined the 12-man ATP Players Council, along with chief rival Andy Murray and Murray's brother Jamie, the world's top doubles player. It is a responsibility Djokovic will apply himself to with the same devotion as his career for the next two years as tennis wrestles with the kind of doping and corruption scandals that have afflicted world sport. "I've been very flattered and humbled to be elected by my colleagues," Djokovic told reporters. "The way I see it is that I managed to gain trust from players, which is very important to me. I have been part of the Player Council for three years earlier in my career. I`ve been familiar with the way the system works. "I'm hoping I can contribute to the evolution and to the betterment of our sport in every aspect." There is little argument that he has taken tennis to new levels of perfection since losing to Murray in the 2013 final here. Since then he has won six of the 11 grand slam titles on offer, taking his tally to 12 overall. In beating Murray at Roland Garros earlier this month he became the first man in 47 years to hold all four majors. He also won the ATP World Tour Finals in November and will have his eye on Olympic gold in August and probably the Davis Cup too. His immediate focus though is on a smooth opening to his Wimbledon campaign having chosen again not to play any grasscourt tournaments in the run-up. "This year is quite different from previous years because I`m coming in with a Roland Garros title," he said. "That gives me, obviously, a lot of confidence. I've played a lot of points in the practice sessions these four or five days, trying to be on the grass as much as I can. So I`m really keen on getting on the court." Djokovic, who beat Federer in the last two Wimbledon finals, could face a tough path to a hat-trick. Big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic is a potential quarter-final opponent with Federer possible in the semis. Ward is unlikely to pose too many problems, although Djokovic is well aware that the crowd will be rooting for his opponent when play begins on Monday. "It's going to be the first match on the untouched grass," he said. " That's probably one of the most special tennis matches that you get to experience as a tennis player. "I'm looking forward to that. Obviously I know that he doesn`t have much to lose." (Reuters)

Djokovic focused on Wimbledon but sees bigger picture

Nick Kyrgios described his first-round clash with the oldest man at Wimbledon - wily Czech Radek Stepanek - as &quot;pretty crazy&quot; on Saturday, saying the 37-year-old had been offering to help coach him. 
 
Stepanek likes nothing better than to make life difficult for more celebrated opponents, as world number two Andy Murray discovered last month when he came within two points of defeat in the first round of the French Open. 
 
But Stepanek, the oldest man in the singles, may end up regretting offering the Australian tips on how to win matches when the two face off on Tuesday. 
 
&quot;To play Stepanek obviously is pretty tough. I&#39;m really good mates with him as well,&quot; 21-year-old Kyrgios, who has been bumped up from his world ranking of 18 to 15th seed, told reporters. &quot;He was just helping me a little bit. So ... playing him now, it&#39;s pretty crazy.&quot; 
 
Asked what kind of pointers he had been given by Stepanek, who coincidentally was the first player the Australian faced when he made his grand slam debut at the French Open in 2013, Kyrgios swiftly changed the subject. 
 
&quot;He was offering to help me a little bit. He&#39;s getting towards the end of his career,&quot; he said. &quot;He&#39;s still playing some great tennis. I feel like grass is his best surface.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
&quot;I know it&#39;s going to be very tough,&quot; added Kyrgios, who could meet 2013 Wimbledon champion Murray in the fourth round. &quot;For me, they&#39;re just fun matches. I&#39;m not looking too far ahead. I know the Kyrgios-Murray fourth round is pretty exciting, but I&#39;ve got some tough matches ahead.&quot; 
 
Kyrgios reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 2014, but made the wrong sort of headlines last year when he was accused of &#39;tanking&#39; (not trying) during some points of his defeat by Frenchman Richard Gasquet. 
 
He was fined and given a suspended ban weeks later for making lewd remarks about the girlfriend of Stanislas Wawrinka during a match between the pair in Montreal. 
 
Asked if he had been warned of his behaviour coming into the Wimbledon, he snapped: &quot;No, I just compete.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

Stepanek likes nothing better than to make life difficult for his more celebrated opponents

Nick Kyrgios described his first-round clash with the oldest man at Wimbledon - wily Czech Radek Stepanek - as "pretty crazy" on Saturday, saying the 37-year-old had been offering to help coach him. Stepanek likes nothing better than to make life difficult for more celebrated opponents, as world number two Andy Murray discovered last month when he came within two points of defeat in the first round of the French Open. But Stepanek, the oldest man in the singles, may end up regretting offering the Australian tips on how to win matches when the two face off on Tuesday. "To play Stepanek obviously is pretty tough. I'm really good mates with him as well," 21-year-old Kyrgios, who has been bumped up from his world ranking of 18 to 15th seed, told reporters. "He was just helping me a little bit. So ... playing him now, it's pretty crazy." Asked what kind of pointers he had been given by Stepanek, who coincidentally was the first player the Australian faced when he made his grand slam debut at the French Open in 2013, Kyrgios swiftly changed the subject. "He was offering to help me a little bit. He's getting towards the end of his career," he said. "He's still playing some great tennis. I feel like grass is his best surface." "I know it's going to be very tough," added Kyrgios, who could meet 2013 Wimbledon champion Murray in the fourth round. "For me, they're just fun matches. I'm not looking too far ahead. I know the Kyrgios-Murray fourth round is pretty exciting, but I've got some tough matches ahead." Kyrgios reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 2014, but made the wrong sort of headlines last year when he was accused of 'tanking' (not trying) during some points of his defeat by Frenchman Richard Gasquet. He was fined and given a suspended ban weeks later for making lewd remarks about the girlfriend of Stanislas Wawrinka during a match between the pair in Montreal. Asked if he had been warned of his behaviour coming into the Wimbledon, he snapped: "No, I just compete." (Reuters)

Kyrgios takes on Wimbledon's old man and mate Stepanek

Australia&#39;s Bernard Tomic thinks he is playing some of the best grasscourt tennis of his career, and is in a good place off the court, as he heads into the Wimbledon championships main draw for the seventh time. 
 
The 23-year-old&#39;s campaign at the All England Club ended in the third round last year and was followed by a very public and bitter row with Tennis Australia over what he said was their lack of backing for him. 
 
Since then, there have been rows over his suitability to be part of Australia&#39;s Olympic team, which he defused by withdrawing his name from consideration, and the now traditional woes of his claycourt season. 
 
After a second-round departure at the French Open that surprised few given his dislike of the Roland Garros surface, however, Tomic has rediscovered his form on grass at &#39;s-Hertogenbosch and Queen&#39;s Club. 
 
&quot;I&#39;d say probably it&#39;s the best it&#39;s been leading into Wimbledon,&quot; the 19th seed told Australia&#39;s Fox Sports TV. 
 
&quot;I managed to play two grasscourt tournaments, played really well, making the quarters in the Netherlands and the semis at Queen&#39;s.&nbsp;I feel like I&#39;m playing some of my best tennis on grass and now we&#39;re here at the famous Wimbledon tournament and I&#39;m ready to go.&quot; 
 
Tomic made his grand slam breakthrough when he reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals as a qualifier in 2011, and it remains his favourite of the sport&#39;s four majors. 
 
&quot;It was a huge moment for my career that turned everything around and I always look back on that leading into any grasscourt tournament,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;I take back that memory and I&#39;m always in a position to play my best tennis on grass. On grass, I always seem to be intense and on my feet and I always seem to play really well.&quot; 
 
Lapses of concentration and intensity have been a problem for Tomic throughout a career that promised so much when he won two junior grand slam titles. 
 
Allegations of giving up, or tanking, have dogged him in recent years and reached fever pitch when he faced match point at the Madrid Open in May with his racket upside down. 
 
He knows, however, that he will have to be on his toes for his first round match against tricky Spanish left-hander Fernando Verdasco, who he beat at Queen&#39;s Club to take a 4-1 lead in their career head-to-head. 
 
&quot;Last week was an incredible match,&quot; Tomic said. 
 
&quot;He&#39;s going to come out swinging, doing some different things, he knows he&#39;s down in the record against me but that&#39;s not going to stop him playing well.&quot; 
 
Off court, the presence of Lleyton Hewitt in London should also ensure no repeat of the rows with Tennis Australia. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m happy now, I&#39;ve got a good team around me, and I&#39;m at my favourite tournament as well,&quot; he added. 
 
(Reuters)

After a second-round departure at the French Open, Bernard Tomic rediscovered his form on grass at 's-Hertogenbosch and Queen's Club

Australia's Bernard Tomic thinks he is playing some of the best grasscourt tennis of his career, and is in a good place off the court, as he heads into the Wimbledon championships main draw for the seventh time. The 23-year-old's campaign at the All England Club ended in the third round last year and was followed by a very public and bitter row with Tennis Australia over what he said was their lack of backing for him. Since then, there have been rows over his suitability to be part of Australia's Olympic team, which he defused by withdrawing his name from consideration, and the now traditional woes of his claycourt season. After a second-round departure at the French Open that surprised few given his dislike of the Roland Garros surface, however, Tomic has rediscovered his form on grass at 's-Hertogenbosch and Queen's Club. "I'd say probably it's the best it's been leading into Wimbledon," the 19th seed told Australia's Fox Sports TV. "I managed to play two grasscourt tournaments, played really well, making the quarters in the Netherlands and the semis at Queen's. I feel like I'm playing some of my best tennis on grass and now we're here at the famous Wimbledon tournament and I'm ready to go." Tomic made his grand slam breakthrough when he reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals as a qualifier in 2011, and it remains his favourite of the sport's four majors. "It was a huge moment for my career that turned everything around and I always look back on that leading into any grasscourt tournament," he said. "I take back that memory and I'm always in a position to play my best tennis on grass. On grass, I always seem to be intense and on my feet and I always seem to play really well." Lapses of concentration and intensity have been a problem for Tomic throughout a career that promised so much when he won two junior grand slam titles. Allegations of giving up, or tanking, have dogged him in recent years and reached fever pitch when he faced match point at the Madrid Open in May with his racket upside down. He knows, however, that he will have to be on his toes for his first round match against tricky Spanish left-hander Fernando Verdasco, who he beat at Queen's Club to take a 4-1 lead in their career head-to-head. "Last week was an incredible match," Tomic said. "He's going to come out swinging, doing some different things, he knows he's down in the record against me but that's not going to stop him playing well." Off court, the presence of Lleyton Hewitt in London should also ensure no repeat of the rows with Tennis Australia. "I'm happy now, I've got a good team around me, and I'm at my favourite tournament as well," he added. (Reuters)

All England grass a tonic for Tomic

Defending champion Novak Djokovic and seven-time winner Roger Federer were on Friday drawn to meet in the semi-finals of this year&#39;s Wimbledon which starts on Monday. 
 
World number one Djokovic, who is bidding to take another step closer to the first calendar Grand Slam since 1969, has defeated Federer in the last two finals at the All England Club. 
 
The draw means that second seed Andy Murray, the 2013 champion, was lined up for a semi-final against fourth seeded Stan Wawrinka. 
 
Three-time champion Djokovic completed the career Grand Slam with victory at the French Open earlier this month and now holds all four majors. It was his 12th career major and made him the first man since Jim Courier in 1992 to win the Australian and French Opens in the same year. The 29-year-old Serb begins his Wimbledon campaign against British wild card James Ward and could meet big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic in the last-eight. 
 
Murray takes on compatriot Liam Broady in the first round with a potential clash against Australia&#39;s Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round. Frenchman Richard Gasquet is a possible quarter-final rival. 
 
Federer, seeded three but enduring an injury-hit season, starts against Argentina&#39;s Guido Pella, ranked 51 in the world. The 34-year-old Swiss, the holder of a record 17 majors, could face Japan&#39;s Kei Nishikori in the quarter-finals. 
 
If seedings play out, Wawrinka would come up against in-form Dominic Thiem of Austria for a place in the last-four. 
 
Defending women&#39;s champion Serena Williams, chasing a seventh Wimbledon title to equal Steffi Graf&#39;s Open era record of 22 majors, was drawn to face Polish third seed Agnieszka Radwanska in the last-four. Radwanska made the final in 2012. 
 
Reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza, who beat Williams to claim the trophy, could face Australian Open winner Angelique Kerber in the last-four. Muguruza begins against Italy&#39;s Camila Giorgi. 
 
The women&#39;s draw held out the tantalising prospect of an all-Williams final with Serena&#39;s sister Venus in the opposite half of the draw. 
 
Venus, 36 and a five-time champion, is seeded to face Muguruza in the last-eight while Serena could come up against Italy&#39;s Roberta Vinci who dumped her out of the US Open semi-finals in 2015. 
 
In other potential quarter-finals, Radwanska could meet Belinda Bencic while Kerber was drawn to face Simona Halep. Serena starts against a qualifier and will face either fellow American Christina McHale or Slovak veteran Daniela Hantuchova in the second round. 
 
Two-time champion Petra Kvitova meets Romania&#39;s Sorana Cirstea in her opener. British number one Johanna Konta, the first home seed in the women&#39;s draw since 1984, takes on Monica Puig in the first round. 
 
(AFP)

Djokovic begins his campaign against British wild card James Ward and could meet big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic in the last eight

Defending champion Novak Djokovic and seven-time winner Roger Federer were on Friday drawn to meet in the semi-finals of this year's Wimbledon which starts on Monday. World number one Djokovic, who is bidding to take another step closer to the first calendar Grand Slam since 1969, has defeated Federer in the last two finals at the All England Club. The draw means that second seed Andy Murray, the 2013 champion, was lined up for a semi-final against fourth seeded Stan Wawrinka. Three-time champion Djokovic completed the career Grand Slam with victory at the French Open earlier this month and now holds all four majors. It was his 12th career major and made him the first man since Jim Courier in 1992 to win the Australian and French Opens in the same year. The 29-year-old Serb begins his Wimbledon campaign against British wild card James Ward and could meet big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic in the last-eight. Murray takes on compatriot Liam Broady in the first round with a potential clash against Australia's Nick Kyrgios in the fourth round. Frenchman Richard Gasquet is a possible quarter-final rival. Federer, seeded three but enduring an injury-hit season, starts against Argentina's Guido Pella, ranked 51 in the world. The 34-year-old Swiss, the holder of a record 17 majors, could face Japan's Kei Nishikori in the quarter-finals. If seedings play out, Wawrinka would come up against in-form Dominic Thiem of Austria for a place in the last-four. Defending women's champion Serena Williams, chasing a seventh Wimbledon title to equal Steffi Graf's Open era record of 22 majors, was drawn to face Polish third seed Agnieszka Radwanska in the last-four. Radwanska made the final in 2012. Reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza, who beat Williams to claim the trophy, could face Australian Open winner Angelique Kerber in the last-four. Muguruza begins against Italy's Camila Giorgi. The women's draw held out the tantalising prospect of an all-Williams final with Serena's sister Venus in the opposite half of the draw. Venus, 36 and a five-time champion, is seeded to face Muguruza in the last-eight while Serena could come up against Italy's Roberta Vinci who dumped her out of the US Open semi-finals in 2015. In other potential quarter-finals, Radwanska could meet Belinda Bencic while Kerber was drawn to face Simona Halep. Serena starts against a qualifier and will face either fellow American Christina McHale or Slovak veteran Daniela Hantuchova in the second round. Two-time champion Petra Kvitova meets Romania's Sorana Cirstea in her opener. British number one Johanna Konta, the first home seed in the women's draw since 1984, takes on Monica Puig in the first round. (AFP)

World champion Djokovic, Federer drawn for Wimbledon semi-final clash

Florian Mayer put more than a year of injury problems behind him to secure a 6-2 5-7 6-3 victory over teenager Alexander Zverev in an all-German final at the Halle Open on Sunday. 
 
The 32-year-old&#39;s triumph made him the first German to win at home in Halle since Tommy Haas in 2012. At 192 in the world, he also became the lowest-ranked tour-level winner since then-number 240 Nicolas Mahut&#39;s victory in Den Bosch in 2013. 
 
&quot;I wasn&#39;t sure I could play tennis six months ago so I am just really happy,&quot; said Mayer, sidelined for over 12 months with a groin injury before returning to the tour in Bucharest in April. &quot;It is the best feeling I have had on a tennis court.&quot; 
 
The win on grass in the pre-Wimbledon build-up tournament gave Mayer his second title, five years on from his maiden triumph on the clay of Bucharest, will put him back into the top 100 in the ATP rankings. In 2011, he was ranked 18th. 
 
Nineteen-year-old Zverev, who knocked out 17-times grand-slam champion Roger Federer in the semis and was seeking his first title, put up a good fight, particularly in the second set of the match between the two unseeded players. 
 
After losing the first set he reeled off nine of the first 10 points in the second, breaking in the opening game and consolidating for 2-0. The teenager then saved two match points before winning the set to force a decider. 
 
But Mayer broke to go 4-2 up and his steadier game gave him the title on his fifth match point after one hour 55 minutes. 
 
(Reuters)

He beat Alexander Zverev in an all-German final on Sunday

Florian Mayer put more than a year of injury problems behind him to secure a 6-2 5-7 6-3 victory over teenager Alexander Zverev in an all-German final at the Halle Open on Sunday. The 32-year-old's triumph made him the first German to win at home in Halle since Tommy Haas in 2012. At 192 in the world, he also became the lowest-ranked tour-level winner since then-number 240 Nicolas Mahut's victory in Den Bosch in 2013. "I wasn't sure I could play tennis six months ago so I am just really happy," said Mayer, sidelined for over 12 months with a groin injury before returning to the tour in Bucharest in April. "It is the best feeling I have had on a tennis court." The win on grass in the pre-Wimbledon build-up tournament gave Mayer his second title, five years on from his maiden triumph on the clay of Bucharest, will put him back into the top 100 in the ATP rankings. In 2011, he was ranked 18th. Nineteen-year-old Zverev, who knocked out 17-times grand-slam champion Roger Federer in the semis and was seeking his first title, put up a good fight, particularly in the second set of the match between the two unseeded players. After losing the first set he reeled off nine of the first 10 points in the second, breaking in the opening game and consolidating for 2-0. The teenager then saved two match points before winning the set to force a decider. But Mayer broke to go 4-2 up and his steadier game gave him the title on his fifth match point after one hour 55 minutes. (Reuters)

Mayer puts injury struggles behind him to win Halle title

Andy Murray became the first player to hold aloft the super-sized Queen&#39;s Club trophy for a fifth time after he beat big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic 6-7(5) 6-4 6-3 in the final of the Aegon Championships on Sunday. 
 
The British top seed&#39;s title hopes appeared to be faltering when he trailed by a set and 3-0 down in the second but the 2013 Wimbledon champion drew on his greater grasscourt pedigree to turn the match around. 
 
Murray, who also hoisted the trophy in 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015, had shared the previous record of four Queen&#39;s titles with seven other men, including Boris Becker, Roy Emerson and Raonic&#39;s new grasscourt coach John McEnroe. 
 
However, a backhand volley into the net from Raonic allowed Murray to climb to the top of the pile and celebrate a winning start to his renewed coaching relationship with Ivan Lendl. 
 
&quot;This tournament has loads of history... it&#39;s a pleasure to play in front of someone like John (McEnroe)... and any time you can do something a bit better than someone like him, it&#39;s an amazing feeling,&quot; Murray said during the presentation ceremony. &quot;To win here for a fifth time means a lot to me.&quot; 
 
While McEnroe was among those applauding the champion, Lendl performed a swift disappearing act from Centre Court even before Murray had a chance to celebrate his victory. 
 
&quot;It was nice of Ivan to stick around for the presentation,&quot; joked Murray, who successfully defended the title at the Wimbledon warm-up tournament for the first time in his career. 
 
Raonic&#39;s gamble to hire seven-times grand slam champion McEnroe appeared to be paying off as he looked set to win his first title on the lush green surface midway through the second set. The Canadian had reached the final without dropping serve all week and when he led 3-0 in the second set, it seemed that Murray would also fall under his spell. 
 
But a blistering cross-court service return in the fifth game allowed the Scot to finally break Raonic&#39;s momentum and from then on the Canadian third seed, who hurled down 14 aces, was powerless to stop Murray&#39;s victory charge. 
 
&quot;Congratulations to Andy for winning this tournament for a fifth time but I&#39;m sure it&#39;s not nearly as special as having your first fathers&#39; day as well,&quot; Raonic said after contesting his first grasscourt final. &quot;It&#39;s my first grass match on a Sunday and hopefully we can have a rematch in a couple of Sundays. I&#39;m feeling pretty good.&quot; 
 
Following runner-up finishes at the year&#39;s first two majors in Melbourne and Paris, Murray will now hope his decision to re-hire Lendl will allow him to add to the two grand slam titles he won during his first stint with the Czech-born great. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

He beat the Canadian in three sets to lift the super-sized trophy

Andy Murray became the first player to hold aloft the super-sized Queen's Club trophy for a fifth time after he beat big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic 6-7(5) 6-4 6-3 in the final of the Aegon Championships on Sunday. The British top seed's title hopes appeared to be faltering when he trailed by a set and 3-0 down in the second but the 2013 Wimbledon champion drew on his greater grasscourt pedigree to turn the match around. Murray, who also hoisted the trophy in 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015, had shared the previous record of four Queen's titles with seven other men, including Boris Becker, Roy Emerson and Raonic's new grasscourt coach John McEnroe. However, a backhand volley into the net from Raonic allowed Murray to climb to the top of the pile and celebrate a winning start to his renewed coaching relationship with Ivan Lendl. "This tournament has loads of history... it's a pleasure to play in front of someone like John (McEnroe)... and any time you can do something a bit better than someone like him, it's an amazing feeling," Murray said during the presentation ceremony. "To win here for a fifth time means a lot to me." While McEnroe was among those applauding the champion, Lendl performed a swift disappearing act from Centre Court even before Murray had a chance to celebrate his victory. "It was nice of Ivan to stick around for the presentation," joked Murray, who successfully defended the title at the Wimbledon warm-up tournament for the first time in his career. Raonic's gamble to hire seven-times grand slam champion McEnroe appeared to be paying off as he looked set to win his first title on the lush green surface midway through the second set. The Canadian had reached the final without dropping serve all week and when he led 3-0 in the second set, it seemed that Murray would also fall under his spell. But a blistering cross-court service return in the fifth game allowed the Scot to finally break Raonic's momentum and from then on the Canadian third seed, who hurled down 14 aces, was powerless to stop Murray's victory charge. "Congratulations to Andy for winning this tournament for a fifth time but I'm sure it's not nearly as special as having your first fathers' day as well," Raonic said after contesting his first grasscourt final. "It's my first grass match on a Sunday and hopefully we can have a rematch in a couple of Sundays. I'm feeling pretty good." Following runner-up finishes at the year's first two majors in Melbourne and Paris, Murray will now hope his decision to re-hire Lendl will allow him to add to the two grand slam titles he won during his first stint with the Czech-born great. (Reuters)

Murray downs Raonic to win record fifth Queen's title

Roger Federer&#39;s bid to win a ninth Halle Open title was ended in the semi-final on Saturday by German teenager Alexander Zverev. The 19-year-old defeated the 17-time Grand Slam champion 7-6(4) 5-7 6-3. 
 
Reigning champion Federer, on the comeback trail after back problems, was looking to reach the final of his traditional pre-Wimbledon tune-up in Germany for an unprecedented 11th time, but found the big-serving 19-year-old home favourite too formidable. 
 
The Swiss world number three had not lost to a teenager for nearly 10 years since the young Andy Murray beat him in Cincinnati in 2006, which gives an indication of Zverev&#39;s considerable potential. 
 
World number 38 Zverev, who had lost to Federer in their only previous meeting in May, dropped just four points on serve in the 39-minute opening set, blasting 14 winners as he took the tiebreak 7-4. 
 
Federer earned a break of serve at 5-5 with a beautiful dropshot in the second set to restore parity but Zverev, the son of a former Russian player with the same name, responded strongly to dethrone the reigning Halle champion. 
 
Zverev will meet the winner of the other semi between Austrian Dominic Thiem and German Florian Mayer. 
(Reuters)

The Swiss maestro lost to German teenager Alexander Zverev

Roger Federer's bid to win a ninth Halle Open title was ended in the semi-final on Saturday by German teenager Alexander Zverev. The 19-year-old defeated the 17-time Grand Slam champion 7-6(4) 5-7 6-3. Reigning champion Federer, on the comeback trail after back problems, was looking to reach the final of his traditional pre-Wimbledon tune-up in Germany for an unprecedented 11th time, but found the big-serving 19-year-old home favourite too formidable. The Swiss world number three had not lost to a teenager for nearly 10 years since the young Andy Murray beat him in Cincinnati in 2006, which gives an indication of Zverev's considerable potential. World number 38 Zverev, who had lost to Federer in their only previous meeting in May, dropped just four points on serve in the 39-minute opening set, blasting 14 winners as he took the tiebreak 7-4. Federer earned a break of serve at 5-5 with a beautiful dropshot in the second set to restore parity but Zverev, the son of a former Russian player with the same name, responded strongly to dethrone the reigning Halle champion. Zverev will meet the winner of the other semi between Austrian Dominic Thiem and German Florian Mayer. (Reuters)

Federer humbled in Halle

Dreadlocked German Dustin Brown will have the chance to follow up last year&#39;s Wimbledon heroics after being handed a wildcard for the championships on Wednesday. 
 
Brown, ranked 87th in the world, provided the shock of the tournament 12 months ago when he came through qualifying before overwhelming twice former champion Rafael Nadal in the second round with a scintillating display of attacking tennis. 
 
The 31-year-old posted a photograph of himself celebrating on his Twitter account @DreddyTennis and expressed his thanks to tournament organisers. 
 
Czech veteran Radek Stepanek, 37, has also been handed one of the Wimbledon wildcards. 
 
The former world number four came within two points of knocking eventual finalist Andy Murray out of the French Open in the first round. 
 
Slovakia&#39;s former top-10 player Daniela Hantuchova and Britain&#39;s former junior champion Laura Robson received wildcards into the women&#39;s main draw. 
 
Wimbledon begins on June 27. 
(Reuters)

The 31-year-old posted a photograph of himself celebrating on his Twitter account @DreddyTennis expressing thanks to organisers

Dreadlocked German Dustin Brown will have the chance to follow up last year's Wimbledon heroics after being handed a wildcard for the championships on Wednesday. Brown, ranked 87th in the world, provided the shock of the tournament 12 months ago when he came through qualifying before overwhelming twice former champion Rafael Nadal in the second round with a scintillating display of attacking tennis. The 31-year-old posted a photograph of himself celebrating on his Twitter account @DreddyTennis and expressed his thanks to tournament organisers. Czech veteran Radek Stepanek, 37, has also been handed one of the Wimbledon wildcards. The former world number four came within two points of knocking eventual finalist Andy Murray out of the French Open in the first round. Slovakia's former top-10 player Daniela Hantuchova and Britain's former junior champion Laura Robson received wildcards into the women's main draw. Wimbledon begins on June 27. (Reuters)

Nadal conqueror Brown handed Wimbledon wildcard

Serena Williams may have been second best at the French Open on Saturday but the American has moved ahead of fellow tennis player Maria Sharapova to top the women&#39;s earnings list in sports, according to Forbes Magazine. 
 
Williams ended the Russian&#39;s 11-year reign as the world number one women&#39;s money earner in sports by hauling in $28.9 million in combined prize money and off-field earnings over the past 12 months, the magazine said yesterday. 
 
Sharapova, who lost some sponsorship money after announcing she had tested positive for the recently banned substance meldonium at the Australian Open in January and is provisionally suspended, holds second spot at $21.9 million. 
 
American mixed martial arts standout Ronda Rousey shot up to third on the list at $14 million from eighth place and $6.5 million, just ahead of compatriot and NASCAR driver Danica Patrick, who earned $13.9 million, according to www.forbes.com. 
 
The rest of the women&#39;s top 10 were also tennis players. 
 
Poland&#39;s Agnieszka Radwanska ranked fifth at $10.2 million followed by Dane Caroline Wozniacki ($8 million), Spain&#39;s newly-crowned French Open champion Garbine Muguruza ($7.6 million), Serb Ana Ivanovic ($7.4 million), Victoria Azarenka of Belarus ($6.6) and Canada&#39;s Eugenie Bouchard ($6.2 million).

The US tennis star has earned $28.9 million in the last 12 months while Maria Sharapova has earned $21.9 million in this time period

Serena Williams may have been second best at the French Open on Saturday but the American has moved ahead of fellow tennis player Maria Sharapova to top the women's earnings list in sports, according to Forbes Magazine. Williams ended the Russian's 11-year reign as the world number one women's money earner in sports by hauling in $28.9 million in combined prize money and off-field earnings over the past 12 months, the magazine said yesterday. Sharapova, who lost some sponsorship money after announcing she had tested positive for the recently banned substance meldonium at the Australian Open in January and is provisionally suspended, holds second spot at $21.9 million. American mixed martial arts standout Ronda Rousey shot up to third on the list at $14 million from eighth place and $6.5 million, just ahead of compatriot and NASCAR driver Danica Patrick, who earned $13.9 million, according to www.forbes.com. The rest of the women's top 10 were also tennis players. Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska ranked fifth at $10.2 million followed by Dane Caroline Wozniacki ($8 million), Spain's newly-crowned French Open champion Garbine Muguruza ($7.6 million), Serb Ana Ivanovic ($7.4 million), Victoria Azarenka of Belarus ($6.6) and Canada's Eugenie Bouchard ($6.2 million).

Serena passes suspended Sharapova as top sportswoman earner

Fans spent more time looking at the murky Parisian sky than watching&nbsp;tennis on Tuesday as French Open organisers were accused of &quot;not caring about the players&quot; after the event was disrupted by more rain following the previous day&#39;s washout.

Czech seventh seed Thomas Berdych summed up everyone&#39;s frustration on a day when nine hours of play was lost by tweeting: &quot;Hey @AustralianOpen can you send us one roof here to Paris?! You have 3 down there.&quot;

The inability to play under cover, with Roland Garros being the only one of the four grand slam venues that does not have a court with a retractable roof, certainly proved costly for Agnieszka Radwanska and Simona Halep -- fourth-round losers in the only two matches that were completed on day 10.

With the fixture list piling up, the women in top seed Serena Williams&#39; half of the draw would now need to play on four successive days to win the title if the final takes place on Saturday as scheduled -- though more rain is forecast.

World number one Novak Djokovic and the men in his half of the draw, including Berdych, can also forget about enjoying the traditional rest days between each round as they would have to play on four of the next five days to contest Sunday&#39;s final.

Radwanska, the world number two, and 2014 runner-up Halep --who both started their last-16 matches on Sunday -- were forced to play in misty rain on Tuesday as organisers made a desperate attempt to clear the huge backlog.

&quot;No one cares about the players in my opinion,&quot; sixth seed Halep said after she was beaten 7-6(0) 6-3 by Australian Sam Stosur in a battle of former finalists.

&quot;It was impossible to play. To play&nbsp;tennis&nbsp;matches during the rain is a bit too much. I was close to getting injured with my back... but no one cares.&quot;

Radwanska had been leading Bulgaria&#39;s Tsvetana Pironkova 6-2 3-0 when rain halted play on Sunday.

When the match resumed more than 40 hours later, the Polish second seed suffered a monumental meltdown as she lost 10 successive games in a 2-6 6-3 6-3 defeat by an opponent ranked 100 places below her.

&quot;I&#39;m just so surprised and angry that we have to play in the rain. I mean, it&#39;s not a $10,000 tournament. It&#39;s a grand slam,&quot; said Radwanska, the highest seed to exit the tournament.

&quot;How can you allow players to play in the rain? I cannot play in that condition. They really don&#39;t care what we think.&quot;

Ernests Gulbis and David Goffin did get on court for their fourth round showdown but took matters into their own hands by marching back into the locker room even before organisers had a chance to make a call.

It was a decision that Halep welcomed. &quot;Good. Well done to them,&quot; the Romanian said as she gave them a thumbs-up.

While matches at the three other majors -- Wimbledon (grass), Australian and U.S. Opens (both hardcourts) -- are halted at the first sight of any raindrops, the brittle claycourt surface at Roland Garros means competitors are often told to play on in drizzle.

Roger Federer did just that in the 2009 men&#39;s final when he beat Robin Soderling to win his solitary French Open trophy.

Unsurprisingly, Pironkova did not think Tuesday&#39;s conditions were unplayable, though she acknowledged they were far from ideal.

&quot;Well, it&#39;s happened before, of course. We have played in all sorts of conditions,&quot; said the Bulgarian, a semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 2010.

&quot;Usually if the court is not fit for play, like if it&#39;s slippery, they would cancel the match right away. But today the court was still hanging in, it was okay. We could have played, and so we did.&quot;

Radwanska and Halep&#39;s exit meant that at least five of the top eight women&#39;s seeds failed to make their allotted quarter-final spots.

Only two of 10 scheduled matches were completed as the claycourt major suffered its sixth day of showers, with Djokovic -- leading Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6 6-4 4-1 -- one of 16 players still stranded in the fourth round.

Rain has caused havoc at the clay courts leaving players and spectators unhappy

Fans spent more time looking at the murky Parisian sky than watching tennis on Tuesday as French Open organisers were accused of "not caring about the players" after the event was disrupted by more rain following the previous day's washout. Czech seventh seed Thomas Berdych summed up everyone's frustration on a day when nine hours of play was lost by tweeting: "Hey @AustralianOpen can you send us one roof here to Paris?! You have 3 down there." The inability to play under cover, with Roland Garros being the only one of the four grand slam venues that does not have a court with a retractable roof, certainly proved costly for Agnieszka Radwanska and Simona Halep -- fourth-round losers in the only two matches that were completed on day 10. With the fixture list piling up, the women in top seed Serena Williams' half of the draw would now need to play on four successive days to win the title if the final takes place on Saturday as scheduled -- though more rain is forecast. World number one Novak Djokovic and the men in his half of the draw, including Berdych, can also forget about enjoying the traditional rest days between each round as they would have to play on four of the next five days to contest Sunday's final. Radwanska, the world number two, and 2014 runner-up Halep --who both started their last-16 matches on Sunday -- were forced to play in misty rain on Tuesday as organisers made a desperate attempt to clear the huge backlog. "No one cares about the players in my opinion," sixth seed Halep said after she was beaten 7-6(0) 6-3 by Australian Sam Stosur in a battle of former finalists. "It was impossible to play. To play tennis matches during the rain is a bit too much. I was close to getting injured with my back... but no one cares." Radwanska had been leading Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova 6-2 3-0 when rain halted play on Sunday. When the match resumed more than 40 hours later, the Polish second seed suffered a monumental meltdown as she lost 10 successive games in a 2-6 6-3 6-3 defeat by an opponent ranked 100 places below her. "I'm just so surprised and angry that we have to play in the rain. I mean, it's not a $10,000 tournament. It's a grand slam," said Radwanska, the highest seed to exit the tournament. "How can you allow players to play in the rain? I cannot play in that condition. They really don't care what we think." Ernests Gulbis and David Goffin did get on court for their fourth round showdown but took matters into their own hands by marching back into the locker room even before organisers had a chance to make a call. It was a decision that Halep welcomed. "Good. Well done to them," the Romanian said as she gave them a thumbs-up. While matches at the three other majors -- Wimbledon (grass), Australian and U.S. Opens (both hardcourts) -- are halted at the first sight of any raindrops, the brittle claycourt surface at Roland Garros means competitors are often told to play on in drizzle. Roger Federer did just that in the 2009 men's final when he beat Robin Soderling to win his solitary French Open trophy. Unsurprisingly, Pironkova did not think Tuesday's conditions were unplayable, though she acknowledged they were far from ideal. "Well, it's happened before, of course. We have played in all sorts of conditions," said the Bulgarian, a semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 2010. "Usually if the court is not fit for play, like if it's slippery, they would cancel the match right away. But today the court was still hanging in, it was okay. We could have played, and so we did." Radwanska and Halep's exit meant that at least five of the top eight women's seeds failed to make their allotted quarter-final spots. Only two of 10 scheduled matches were completed as the claycourt major suffered its sixth day of showers, with Djokovic -- leading Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6 6-4 4-1 -- one of 16 players still stranded in the fourth round.

French Open organizers under fire for growing backlog

Sam Stosur powered into the French Open quarter-finals on Tuesday with a straight sets win against Simona Halep, adapting better to damp and heavy conditions that her higher-ranked Romanian opponent called unsafe.

In a match between two former Roland Garros finalists that spanned three days, which was often punctuated by drizzle and twice suspended due to rain, the 21st-seeded Australian overcame a slow start to beat Halep 7-6(0) 6-3.

In her fourth Roland Garros quarter-final, Stosur will face 102nd-ranked Tsvetana Pironkova after the Bulgarian&#39;s shock three-set win over world number two Agnieszka Radwanska, who also criticised Tuesday&#39;s playing conditions.

Organisers lost a whole day&#39;s play on Monday, the tournament&#39;s first washout since 2000.

Stosur&#39;s win was her first against Halep in their last five encounters and marked a sharp turnaround from their previous clash in April, also on clay, in the Madrid Open semi-final, which the Romanian won 6-2 6-0.

&quot;Madrid was not a good night for me, and ...obviously you get this opportunity to play her again in a big match,&quot; Stosur told a news conference.

&quot;Heavy, wet conditions like this don&#39;t typically help me too much, but I think today I was able to use them better (than Halep).&quot;

Halep agreed.

&quot;It was impossible to play, in my opinion,&quot; she told reporters while praising her opponent. &quot;I don&#39;t care that I lost the match today, but I was close to injuring my back... I didn&#39;t feel safe on court.&quot;

The first rain stoppage in the match was late on Sunday with Halep leading 5-3, the Romanian&#39;s steady pummelling of Stosur&#39;s weaker backhand side having paid off in the seventh game when she took the Australian&#39;s serve on her third break point.

But Stosur, who lost the 2010 final in Paris to Italy&#39;s Francesca Schiavone, was much the sharper when the players resumed on Tuesday.

She consistently served around 20 km/h (12 mph) faster than her opponent and peppered the lines on both sides of the court with forehand groundstrokes that gradually wore down Halep&#39;s defences.

Stosur broke back in the 10th game before, after two service holds, blitzing the tiebreak 7-0.

Stosur then broke again at the start of the second set and led 3-2 until play was suspended again when steady drizzle turned heavier, dropping just one further game to close out the match as Halep continued to struggle in the rain-sodden conditions.

Samantha Stosur defeated number six seed Simona Halep to book her berth in the last eight

Sam Stosur powered into the French Open quarter-finals on Tuesday with a straight sets win against Simona Halep, adapting better to damp and heavy conditions that her higher-ranked Romanian opponent called unsafe. In a match between two former Roland Garros finalists that spanned three days, which was often punctuated by drizzle and twice suspended due to rain, the 21st-seeded Australian overcame a slow start to beat Halep 7-6(0) 6-3. In her fourth Roland Garros quarter-final, Stosur will face 102nd-ranked Tsvetana Pironkova after the Bulgarian's shock three-set win over world number two Agnieszka Radwanska, who also criticised Tuesday's playing conditions. Organisers lost a whole day's play on Monday, the tournament's first washout since 2000. Stosur's win was her first against Halep in their last five encounters and marked a sharp turnaround from their previous clash in April, also on clay, in the Madrid Open semi-final, which the Romanian won 6-2 6-0. "Madrid was not a good night for me, and ...obviously you get this opportunity to play her again in a big match," Stosur told a news conference. "Heavy, wet conditions like this don't typically help me too much, but I think today I was able to use them better (than Halep)." Halep agreed. "It was impossible to play, in my opinion," she told reporters while praising her opponent. "I don't care that I lost the match today, but I was close to injuring my back... I didn't feel safe on court." The first rain stoppage in the match was late on Sunday with Halep leading 5-3, the Romanian's steady pummelling of Stosur's weaker backhand side having paid off in the seventh game when she took the Australian's serve on her third break point. But Stosur, who lost the 2010 final in Paris to Italy's Francesca Schiavone, was much the sharper when the players resumed on Tuesday. She consistently served around 20 km/h (12 mph) faster than her opponent and peppered the lines on both sides of the court with forehand groundstrokes that gradually wore down Halep's defences. Stosur broke back in the 10th game before, after two service holds, blitzing the tiebreak 7-0. Stosur then broke again at the start of the second set and led 3-2 until play was suspended again when steady drizzle turned heavier, dropping just one further game to close out the match as Halep continued to struggle in the rain-sodden conditions.

Stosur overpowers Halep to make French quarters

Fans were left wet and miserable at a soggy Roland Garros on Tuesday -- but not as drenched or depressed as Agnieszka Radwanska, after the world number two&#39;s French Open hopes fizzled out following a monumental meltdown against Tsvetana Pironkova.

Leading her Bulgarian rival 6-2 3-0 when rain halted play on Sunday, Radwanska appeared to have one foot in the quarter-finals.

However, when the fourth-round tussle resumed more than 40 hours later following Monday&#39;s washout, the Polish second seed seemed all at sea as the players were forced to play through misty rain.

She lost 10 games in a row as she fell to a 2-6 6-3 6-3 defeat by an opponent ranked 100 places below her.

&quot;I&#39;m just so surprised and angry that we have to play in the rain,&quot; Radwanska told reporters.

&quot;I mean, it&#39;s not a $10,000 tournament. It&#39;s a grand slam. How can you allow players to play in the rain? I cannot play in that conditions.&quot;

While Radwanska became the highest-ranked player to exit this year&#39;s French Open tournament, her defeat also meant that at least five of the top eight women&#39;s seeds failed to make their allotted quarter-final spots.

Radwanska, playing with a full-sleeved white top over her sleeveless pink dress, struggled to handle the heavy conditions and the sodden balls on Court Suzanne Lenglen and lost six games in a row to surrender the second set with a forehand error.

A further two hour 45 minute rain disruption failed to improve Radwanska&#39;s mood or her fortunes as she fell 4-0 behind in the third set.

The 27-year-old, who called on the trainer to get treatment on her right hand midway through the decider, eventually halted Pironkova&#39;s run by breaking the Bulgarian in the fifth game.

But Radwanska could not avoid the embarrassment of being beaten by a player ranked outside the top 100 for the first time in more than seven years when she netted a forehand on Pironkova&#39;s second match point.

&quot;I had hand surgery few years ago and I couldn&#39;t really play&nbsp;in that conditions. End of story,&quot; a fuming Radwanska said.&nbsp;&quot;For me, playing with those balls in that kind of court is pretty much impossible.&quot;

A match that lasted just two hours and 12 minutes on court finally finished at 4.18 pm local time on Monday, almost 46 hours after it had started on Sunday.

&quot;It was very difficult with all the rain as we were waiting almost two days to finish the match,&quot; a beaming Pironkova said after becoming the first Bulgarian woman to reach the quarter-finals since Sesil Karantantcheva in 2005.

&quot;But I can&#39;t complain.&quot;

World number two Agnieszka Radwanska suffered a shock defeat at the hands of 102-ranked Tsvetana Pironkova

Fans were left wet and miserable at a soggy Roland Garros on Tuesday -- but not as drenched or depressed as Agnieszka Radwanska, after the world number two's French Open hopes fizzled out following a monumental meltdown against Tsvetana Pironkova. Leading her Bulgarian rival 6-2 3-0 when rain halted play on Sunday, Radwanska appeared to have one foot in the quarter-finals. However, when the fourth-round tussle resumed more than 40 hours later following Monday's washout, the Polish second seed seemed all at sea as the players were forced to play through misty rain. She lost 10 games in a row as she fell to a 2-6 6-3 6-3 defeat by an opponent ranked 100 places below her. "I'm just so surprised and angry that we have to play in the rain," Radwanska told reporters. "I mean, it's not a $10,000 tournament. It's a grand slam. How can you allow players to play in the rain? I cannot play in that conditions." While Radwanska became the highest-ranked player to exit this year's French Open tournament, her defeat also meant that at least five of the top eight women's seeds failed to make their allotted quarter-final spots. Radwanska, playing with a full-sleeved white top over her sleeveless pink dress, struggled to handle the heavy conditions and the sodden balls on Court Suzanne Lenglen and lost six games in a row to surrender the second set with a forehand error. A further two hour 45 minute rain disruption failed to improve Radwanska's mood or her fortunes as she fell 4-0 behind in the third set. The 27-year-old, who called on the trainer to get treatment on her right hand midway through the decider, eventually halted Pironkova's run by breaking the Bulgarian in the fifth game. But Radwanska could not avoid the embarrassment of being beaten by a player ranked outside the top 100 for the first time in more than seven years when she netted a forehand on Pironkova's second match point. "I had hand surgery few years ago and I couldn't really play in that conditions. End of story," a fuming Radwanska said. "For me, playing with those balls in that kind of court is pretty much impossible." A match that lasted just two hours and 12 minutes on court finally finished at 4.18 pm local time on Monday, almost 46 hours after it had started on Sunday. "It was very difficult with all the rain as we were waiting almost two days to finish the match," a beaming Pironkova said after becoming the first Bulgarian woman to reach the quarter-finals since Sesil Karantantcheva in 2005. "But I can't complain."

Radwanska crashes out of French Open

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