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Wimbledon (First Week)

Lukas Rosol beat second-seeded Rafael Nadal 6-7 (9) 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4

Arantxa Rus beat fifth-seeded Samantha Stosur 6-2 0-6 6-4

Ernests Gulbis beat sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych 7-6 (5) 7-6 (4) 7-6 (4)

Tamira Paszek beat seventh-seeded Caroline Wozniacki 5-7 7-6 (4) 6-4

Mikhail Youzhny beat eighth-seeded Janko Tipsarevic 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-3

Mirjana Lucic beat ninth-seeded Marion Bartoli 6-4 6-3

Yaroslava Shvedova beat 10th-seeded Sara Errani 6-0 6-4

Elena Vesnina beat Venus Williams 6-1 6-3

SAYING

“I’m sorry for Rafa but today I was somewhere else and I’m really happy for this. I still can’t believe it. It’s like dream for me. I didn’t feel anything. I was in a trance a little bit. I had my adrenaline so high.” – Lukas Rosol, after upsetting Rafael Nadal in a second-round match.

“In the fifth set he played more than unbelievable. First three sets I didn’t play well. It wasn’t the best decision for me to close the roof, but I have to accept it and he came back to play unbelievable in the fifth. He is able to hit the ball very hard without feeling the pressure, so everything was going right for him in the fifth. I am very, very disappointed.” – Rafael Nadal, following his shocking loss to Lukas Rosol.

“It was brutal. Bit of luck in my side maybe. I fought till the very end. I tried in the third, fourth and fifth just to stay alive. In the fourth it was so close. … You obviously don’t have many lives left out there and you just try to play tough and focus point to point.” – Roger Federer, after escaping a five-set, third-round thriller against Julien Benneteau.

“Mentally he’s a rock. He’s two sets down and he doesn’t show anything.” – Julien Benneteau, on Roger Federer’s on-court demeanor.

“I don’t know what to say, but it was a little bit outrageous. I mean, what is this? Is it Davis Cup or is it Wimbledon? After this match, the whole credibility of this tournament went down for me.” – Ivo Karlovic, after being called for 11 foot faults, many on key points, in his loss to Andy Murray.

“I had no idea. All the people start to clap and scream. I was like, ‘What’s going on?’ I even smiled. I was, like, ‘OK, they want to see a good match.’ Then in the gym after the match, when I was cooling down, my coach came, and he’s like, ‘Did you know that you did not lose a point?’ I was like, ‘Really?’ It was incredible. I still cannot believe.” – Yaroslava Shvedova, who won every point – a “Golden Set” – in the first set of her 6-0 6-4 victory over Sara Errani.

“She served really hard. Hard, hard. It was like playing a Williams.” – Sara Errani, after losing to Yaroslava Shvedova.

“It is crazy, kind of, what’s going on. I’m still trying to stay focused on the task at hand and not get too wrapped around it. Because once you do that, I think it’s tough to be able to play your best.” – Brian Baker, an American qualifier who is now in the second week.

“I had to retire. It was not possible for me to play. You never want to retire during the Grand Slam, one of the great matches when you are playing a good player. It’s never good.” – Vera Zvonareva, on retiring from her match because of a respiratory infection that made it difficult for her to breathe.

“There’s definitely been moments where I think like, ‘Oh, I’m going to take a good look around; I’m going to take these emotions in.’ It’s fun. It’s nice to be looking at sports in this kind of way.” – Kim Clijsters, on playing in her last Wimbledon.

“I think getting through that first match on Centre Court was huge for me. I really felt the crowd this year – more than the others – because I’ve come through. I just love the feeling. I want it more. I can’t wait till next year.” – Heather Watson, who became the first British woman to win on Wimbledon’s Centre Court since 1985, following her loss in her next match.

“I am here to play sport and not politics. Unfortunately I see the games being played within games, and as much as that is very disheartening, I am looking forward to playing my sixth Olympics for my country as I have played for 22 years for the people and the flag.” – Leander Paes, who will be representing India in the London Olympics after two other players refused to team with him in doubles.

“The 128 male players here think like me. Maybe they can’t say it; maybe they won’t; maybe they will lose (USD) $2 million on the contracts. In the conversation in the locker room, for sure they agree with me. Trust me.” – Gilles Simon, who said women players should not receive equal money with the men.

“No matter what anyone says, or the criticisms that we get, despite everything else, I’m sure there are a few more people that watch my matches than his, so …” – Maria Sharapova, responding to Simon’s thoughts on equal pay.

“She’s way hotter than he is, so more people will watch Maria.” – Serena Williams, agreeing with Sharapova.

“Life is like a cup of tea. It won’t be bitter for a lifetime but for a short while anyway.” – Li Ni, taking a more philosophical tone after complaining about being forced to play doubles at the London Olympics.

STRING OF PEARLS

Yaroslava Shvedova hit four aces and 14 winners as she won the first 24 points of her match against 10th-seeded Sara Errani. Fifteen minutes after they began, Shvedova had achieved a “Golden Set,” winning every single point in the opening set of the third-round match. And it wasn’t as if Errani was playing poorly. The Italian had only one unforced error in those six games. Errani finally one a point – and a game – when she broke Shvedova to begin the second set. It was the first “Golden Set: in Grand Slam tournament history and the first in the women’s game since the Open Era began in 1968. Bill Scanlon was the last man to produce a “Golden Set” when he beat Marcos Hocevar at Delray Beach, Florida, USA, in 1983. Ranked 65th in the world, Shvedova owned the previous women’s record of winning 23 consecutive points in a match against Amy Frazier in Memphis, Tennessee, USA, in 2006.

SHOCKER

It had been seven years since Rafael Nadal has been ousted in the second round of a Grand Slam tournament. Lukas Rosol, ranked 100 in the world, pulled off the shocker in one of the greatest upsets in Wimbledon history. Prior to this year, the Czech journeyman had never reached the main draw of the famed grass court event. With powerful serves and flash-quick forehands, Rosol overpowered the two-time Wimbledon champion. Nadal had played in the last five Grand Slam tournament finals and was coming off his record-breaking seventh French Open triumph. Nadal complained to the umpire over Rosol’s constant skipping around the baseline while the Spaniard was preparing to serve. And he bumped into Rosol when the two passed at the net on their way to their chairs for a changeover. Playing a five-set match for the just the third time in his career, Rosol broke Nadal in the first game, then held serve the rest of the way. On match point he served his 22nd ace of the day.

SENT PACKING

Venus Williams had not lost in the first round at Wimbledon since her first appearance in 1997. When Elena Vesnina beat the American 6-1 6-3, it was Williams’ worst loss at Wimbledon and only her fourth first-round Grand Slam tournament defeat. A five-time champion on the grass at Wimbledon, Williams lost the first five games of her match against Vesnina. When asked by reporters about her future status, Williams refused to rule out a return to Wimbledon in 2013. “Life is challenging but I’m always up for a challenge,” said Williams, who has been struggling since last year’s US Open with an autoimmune disease.

SHOULDERING

Rafael Nadal at least found something he could hit during his stunning second-round defeat at the hands of Lukas Rosol. The two-time Wimbledon champion had become clearly irritated by Rosol’s constant movement during his service motion, so much so Nadal complained to the chair umpire. But when the Czech journeyman broke Nadal for a 2-1 lead in the third set, the two players headed for their chairs. When they passed at the net, Nadal dipped his right shoulder and charged into Rosol. “I was surprised that he can do it on the Centre Court at Wimbledon,” the 26-year-old Rosol said. “I didn’t expect it, it was his choice. I thought that he wants to let me go first, you know, but then he start to walk fast. I stop because I don’t want to hit me. He hit me, and then three times he apologize. And I say, OK, OK, OK. It was OK.” Nadal refused to make excuses for his loss and would not discuss his complaint to the chair umpire. “The bad thing of this is anything that I will say now will sound against me,” said Nadal, who won a record seventh French Open earlier this month. “So is not the right moment for me to say what happened out there because it’s gonna sound an excuse, and I never want to put an excuse after a match like today. But the umpire say a few things weren’t right.”

STAYING POWER

Marin Cilic and Sam Querrey weren’t close to the record set by John Isner and Nicolas Mahut. But they did play the second-longest match at the All England Club. Isner beat Mahut 70-68 in the fifth set two years ago, ending an 11-hour, 5-minute marathon. Cilic needed only 5 hours, 31 minutes to eliminate Querrey 7-6 (8) 6-4 6-7 (2) 6-7 (3) 17-15.

SEEING RED

Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic was livid about how many foot-faults were called against him in his second-round loss to Andy Murray. In the tight match played on Centre Court, Karlovic was called for 11 foot-faults. “In my whole life, ever since I was 8 years old, (my) whole life I didn’t do this many foot faults. It was like 11,” Karlovic said. “It was never called when it was like 30 love or 40 love. It was always when it was 30 all or in a tiebreak. I mean, what is this? Is it Davis Cup or is it Wimbledon? After this match, the whole credibility of this tournament went down for me. The Croat charged the officials were influenced by the fact that Murray is British and was playing in front of a partisan home crowd. “After I don’t know how many, I stood a little bit back so they cannot call (foot-fault),” he said. “They still did it. So it was outrageous, outrageous. It’s Wimbledon, Centre Court, and they do this.” An All England Club spokesman said: “If he is wishes to make a formal complaint, then all evidence will be reviewed.”

STAYING LATE

Andy Murray’s march into the second week of Wimbledon came after the clock was stopped. Play is not allowed to continue past 11 p.m. London time because of a curfew. This was no problem when there were no lights at the All England Club and it became two dark to play past 9:30 p.m. But with a retractable roof over Centre Court, lights were installed, allowing play to continue late into the night. The third-round match between Murray and Marcos Baghdatis was allowed to continue after the deadline and Murray wrapped up his 7-5 3-6 7-5 6-1 win at 11:02 p.m. “I was under the impression I was stopping at 11, regardless of what the score was – even if it was in the middle of a game,” Murray said. “But, yeah, obviously, glad that I managed to get to the finish.”

SMASHING TIME

When Bernard Tomic was upset in his opening round match by Belgian wild card David Goffin, the Australian repeatedly slammed his racquet onto the grass as he walked to the net to shake hands. It turned out he damaged Court Two and Wimbledon officials ended up speaking to Tomic. “A ‘talking-to,’ I think would be the wrong word, but we had a word with him,” Wimbledon spokesman Johnny Perkins said. “Essentially I think it was ‘This is not really the behavior we expect, and, more to the point, you have damaged the court’,’ and we did have to put a bit of filler in it.” Perkins said such an official approach to a player was rare at Wimbledon, but that the damage was substantial. “If it needs filler then that means it is quite a rut,” he said.

STOLEN BIRD

London’s Metropolitan police are looking for a hawk that was stolen with its cage from a car parked in Wimbledon. Police said the company that owns the hawk had left a rear window of the car open for ventilation. The bird – Rufus, a Harris hawk – is a family pet that flies above Wimbledon every day, scaring away smaller birds such as pigeons that could distract the players and bother the audience. The 4½-year-old hawk is trained not to attack but to circle the courts to scare off smaller birds. Hawks have been used to clear the skies above Wimbledon during the tournament for about 12 years. It’s an environmentally friendly form of pest control.

SERENA SQUEAKER

Serena Williams hit a Wimbledon-record 23 aces and narrowly beat Zheng Jie 6-7 (5) 6-2 9-7 in a third-round match. Williams, seeking her fifth Wimbledon title, never lost her serve, but couldn’t shake off her Chinese opponent until the very end. “I just wanted to get through that match,” Williams said. “The last thing I wanted to do was lose.” Serena served three times to stay in the match, each time holding at love. The two battled to deuce in the final game, but Williams closed out the victory with a volley winner. Zheng, seeded 25th, committed just 17 unforced errors. Even Zheng had to laugh when a Williams kick second serve bounced over her opponent’s head for an ace.

SIGNAL HONOR

One of the greatest players in tennis history, Martina Navratilova was presented with her official International Tennis Hall of Fame ring during Wimbledon by fellow Hall of Famer Chris Evert. Navratilova won 59 Grand Slam tournament titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles, and is one of just three women to have won all four majors in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. She was inducted into the Newport, Rhode Island, USA, shrine in 2000. The ring was presented by Hall of Fame chairman Christopher Clouser with help from Evert. Since retiring, Navratilova has become a commentator for Tennis Channel. She is also a national spokesperson and the Health and Fitness Ambassador for AARP.

SEATED IN THE ROYAL BOX

Prince Charles attended the All England Club tournament for the first time since 1970. Seated in the Royal Bow on Centre Court, the Prince and Duchess of Cornwall watched Roger Federer beat Fabio Fognini 6-1 6-3 6-2 in 74 minutes. Both players bowed to the Prince and the Duchess, but only after Federer gave tips to the Italian before they walked onto Centre Court. “Fabio, bow at the waist, then shank your backhands,” Federer told his Italian opponent. “Excellent.” During his trip to Wimbledon, Prince Charles met with four retired Australian players: Frank Sedgman, Ashley Cooper, Neale Fraser and Judy Dalton. The Prince will later this year tour Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

SWINGER

As tradition dictates, defending men’s singles champion Novak Djokovic walked out onto Centre Court to play the opening match of this year’s Wimbledon. The Serb broke with tradition when he pulled a golf club out of his bag and took a swing. “It was a little joke we wanted to do with my sponsor,” Djokovic said. “They provided me with a junior golf club because the bags look like golf bags. You can place them the way the golf bag is standing. So it was a little funny thing. Being creative, that’s all. But the fans corrected me right away. They said, ‘This is not a golf course.’ I said, ‘OK.’” The stunt didn’t distract Djokovic from the business at hand. Using tennis racquets, Djokovic beat Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3 6-3 6-1.

SELECTION ROW

Despite the circus atmosphere surrounding India’s Olympic tennis team, Leander Paes said it hasn’t dampened his enthusiasm about appearing in his sixth Olympics. The 39-year-old Paes will play men’s doubles with little-known Vishnu Vardhan and mixed doubles with India’s number one women’s player, Sania Mirza. After both refused to pair with Paes in the London Games, Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna will be India’s other pairing in the men’s doubles. “I am looking forward to representing my country with the teams that the All India Tennis Association have selected,” Paes said. Mirza, however, isn’t happy with the selections. In a statement she said she was disillusioned after being “put up as bait to try and pacify one of the disgruntled stalwarts of Indian tennis.” Mirza and Bhupathi won the French Open mixed doubles earlier this month. Paes had threatened to withdraw from India’s Olympic team before he was paired with Mirza.

STEAMED

Li Na is upset because the Chinese tennis federation has entered her into the women’s doubles at the London Olympics. Li’s team has said that she hoped to focus only on the singles. “I don’t know why they wanted me to play doubles,” said Li, who was named to partner Zhang Shuai in the doubles. “Last time I played doubles was during the 2007 Australian Open.” Zhang failed to qualify for the singles at Wimbledon and lost her first-round doubles match. “I am not 13 years old and need a guardian,” said Li, who is known for being outspoken. “I am 30 now and all these issues could have been put on the table. If both (parties) are OK, we do it, otherwise we do not.” Last year Li became the first player from an Asian country to win a Grand Slam tournament singles title.

SHORT STAY

Wayne Odesnik returned to Wimbledon – at least for a short time. Odesnik lost in five sets to Bjorn Phau in a first-round match out on Court 9. In March 2010, the 26-year-old American pleaded guilty in an Australian court to importing human growth hormone. He was suspended by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) for two years, a ban that was halved because of Odesnik’s cooperation with the ITF’s anti-doping program. He has spent most of the last 18 months playing in tennis’s minor leagues and has raised his ranking to 135th in the world. He reached the main draw at Wimbledon as a “lucky loser.”

SET TO RUN

Novak Djokovic has been nominated in three categories for the 20th annual ESPY awards, which will be given out later this month. Djokovic was nominated for Best Male Athlete, where he is pitted against National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player (MVP) LeBron James, National Football League MVP Aaron Rodgers and major league baseball MVP and Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander. A tennis player has never won the award. The 25-year-old Djokovic is also up for Best Male Tennis Player, where his fellow nominees are Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, and Best International Athlete. Federer won six straight ESPYs before Nadal earned his first win last year in his seventh opportunity. Djokovic has been nominated on three occasions.

SURFING

Wimbledon: www.wimbledon.com/

Braunschweig: http://www.nordlb-open.org/

Biella: www.itfbiella.com

Stanford: www.bankofthewestclassic.com/

Palermo: www.countrytimeclub.com/

Newport: www.atpworldtour.com

Stuttgart: www.mercedescup.iwebfree.de

Båstad: http://men.swedishopen.org/

Umag: www.croatiaopen.hr

Biarritz: www.tournoi.fft.fr/openbogdfsuez

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

MEN

The Championships, Wimbledon, Great Britain, grass (second week)
$134,000 Sparkassen Open, Braunschweig, Germany, clay

WOMEN

The Championships, Wimbledon, Great Britain, grass (second week)
$100,000 XIII Torneo Internazionale Regione Piemonte, Biella, Italy, clay

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

MEN

$451,250 Mercedes Cup, Stuttgart, Germany, clay
$451,250 SkiStar Swedish Open, Båstad, Sweden, clay
$451,250 ATP Vegeta Croatia Open, Umag, Croatia, clay
$398,250 Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, Newport, Rhode Island, USA, grass
$125,000 Bancolombia Open, Bogota, Colombia, clay

WOMEN

$740,000 Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, California, USA, hard
$220,000 XXV Italiacom Open, Palermo, Italy, clay
$100,000 10ème Open GDF Suez de Biarritz, Biarritz, France, clay