Roger Federer reached his 33rd consecutive grand slam quarter-final despite struggling with an injury scare on his way to a tough four-set win over Xavier Malisse at WimbledonFederer looked far from his best amid cold and blustery conditions on Centre Court, but he still managed to record a 7-6 (7/1), 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 success against the world No 75 that sets him up for a last-eight clash against Mikhail Youzhny or Denis Istomin.Part of the reason behind Federer's laboured victory was a back injury for which he needed off-court treatment after the eighth game of the first set.Federer looked determined to get back to the warmth of the locker room early on.The Swiss handed his opponent two break points but Malisse wasted them by netting a forehand and returning wide.The problems did not stop there for Federer as he offered Malisse another chance to break in the fifth game but an ace rescued the six-time champion.Federer then took a medical time-out to receive treatment on the injury, leaving the court, and he moved gingerly upon his return.Malisse seized the initiative, breaking Federer to move 6-5 ahead, but the Swiss struck back immediately by returning a bullet forehand just over the net to draw level.Luckily for Federer, Malisse's game imploded in the tie-break as he made three unforced errors to hand the third seed the set before the rain came.Comical scenes followed as the players emerged from the locker room but they were ordered back when it started raining again.Following an inspection the players returned 35 minutes after the tussle was first suspended, and despite light drizzle, the roof remained open.Federer was still not moving perfectly, but he adapted his game to allow him to take a grip on the match.The Swiss avoided getting involved in baseline rallies and instead opted for softer drop shots to prevent him from putting his injured back to the test.The tactic worked as Federer engineered a break point in the third game and Malisse completely mis-timed a forehand to send the ball flying into the stands about seven yards from the Royal Box.Federer broke again and survived two Malisse break chances to wrap up the second set in quick fashion.Federer wanted to wrap the match up in three sets, but the Swiss, and a shivering crowd on Centre Court, were stunned as Malisse fought back, breaking with a forehand in the opening game.Malisse had two more chances to break in the fifth but he wasted them. It did not matter, however, as the Belgian was already a break up and he served out for the set.A superb backhand from Malisse gave him an immediate break in the fourth set but Federer levelled the match when his opponent spooned a forehand wide at 40-30 behind in the fourth.Federer, who now seemed to be moving better than before, broke again in the sixth game when Malisse netted and the crowd favourite clinched victory with a powerful ace three games later.
Defending Champion Novak Djokovic had little trouble advancing to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, beating fellow Serb Viktor Troicki 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 on Monday underneath the roof on Centre Court.While rain washed out late matches on all other courts at the All England Club, Djokovic dispatched Troicki in just 90 minutes by breaking his friend six times. Djokovic won 16 of his 19 approaches to the net and hit 31 winners overall, compared with 15 for Troicki.The top-ranked Djokovic will next face the winner of the meeting between Richard Gasquet and Florian Mayer, whose match was among those suspended for the day because of persistent rain at the All England Club.Troicki has now lost his last 12 matches against Djokovic.
Serena Williams called on Wimbledon chiefs to beef up their security after the four-time champion's 6-1, 2-6, 7-5victory over Yaroslava Shvedova was marred when she was mobbed by frenzied fans on the way back from Court Two on Monday.Serena had to run the gauntlet of autograph-hunting fans eager to get close to the sixth seed as she walked to and from one of Wimbledon's outer courts.Although Serena was escorted by a posse of security guards, she admitted the journey through the All England Club's crowded walkways got a little intimidating after her fourth round victory.It is not the first time in her illustrious career the 30-year-old American has been scheduled outside Wimbledon's show courts and she believes security must be improved if the sport's biggest stars have to play away from the better-protected arenas."I was totally mobbed. I literally was almost knocked over after the match. It was crazy out there today," Serena said."I guess that comes with the territory. There was tons of security guards in there just going nuts and screaming. I've never heard them scream so loud."Maybe that can be taken into consideration. I think they should take that into account."Serena joked that she was happy to take on any fans who got overzealous, but she was right to be concerned by the situation after having to deal with stalkers at various tournaments including Wimbledon in the past."I wasn't scared. Nobody going to knock me over for real! I'd like to see that happen. You guys know how I can get," Serena said."Maybe that's why I got on Court Two, because they knew I could back myself up. When it boils down, I guess I really didn't need security."Before the off-court drama, Serena looked set to cruise through as she took the first set in emphatic fashion, but Kazakh wildcard Shvedova has been in superb form, winning all 24 points and dropping none in a Golden Set against Sara Errani in the previous round, and she hit back impressively to force the American to a final set.Williams, also taken to three sets by Zheng Jie in the previous round, showed why she is a 13-time Grand Slam champion as she finally subdued her gritty opponent to set up a last eight clash with defending champion Petra Kvitova.Serena hasn't won a Grand Slam since her fourth Wimbledon triumph in 2010 and her first round exit from the French Open against Virginie Razzano last month ranked as her worst ever result at a major.But Williams clearly still has the appetite for more success, even if she might need to up her game to pass the even sterner tests that lie ahead."Drama again! I love the drama," she added. "As long as I get the win I'm fine. I don't feel mental strain. If anything, I feel tougher. I'm Serena Williams; I'm very confident."I'm really fit. I don't feel tired at all.
Sharapova loses to Lisicki in Wimbledon 4th round Top seed Maria Sharapova was knocked out of Wimbledon on Monday, losing 6-4, 6-3 to Sabine Lisicki in the fourth round a month after completing a career Grand Slam.Lisicki, a 15th-ranked German, simply outplayed the 2004 Wimbledon champion in windy, rainy conditions on Court 1 for her first career victory over Sharapova in four matches. She avenged a loss in the semifinals to Sharapova here last year.Also advancing were four-time winner Serena Williams and defending champ Petra Kvitova. Four-time Grand Slam champion Kim Clijsters lost in what she says is her final Wimbledon before retirement later this year.In men's play, six-time champion.
OTHER RESULTS
Victoria Azarenka gave an emphatic statement of her title credentials with a crushing win over Ana Ivanovic in the fourth round at Wimbledon.The second seed had flown under the radar during the first week but she made sure that would not be the case today as she thumped Ivanovic 6-1 6-0 on Centre Court to set up a quarter-final against Tamira Paszek.Azarenka began the year by winning 26 matches in a row, lifting her first grand slam title at the Australian Open and taking over the number one ranking.The Belarusian struggled a little on the clay, losing to Dominika Cibulkova in the fourth round of the French Open and seeing Maria Sharapova move above her in the rankings, but she now looks to be back to her best.She was simply far too good for Ivanovic, who could not cope with the power or movement of her opponent.Azarenka was 4-0 up when play was halted because of rain and the roof was shut, but the change in conditions did not affect the pattern of the match.Ivanovic managed to get on the board but it was only a brief respite and Azarenka refused to allow the former French Open champion a single game in the second set.The 22-year-old will now hope to repeat last year's success over Austrian Paszek, when they also met in the quarter-finals, with Azarenka winning that one 6-3 6-1.
Kim Clijsters suffered the kind of mauling that must make retirement all the more attractive as her final Wimbledon came to a bitterly disappointing end.Thirteen years have passed since Steffi Graf halted the 16-year-old Clijsters' first tilt at Wimbledon in the fourth round, and on Monday it was another German in Angelique Kerber who ended the Belgian's run at the same stage and in her penultimate grand slam.Clijsters has the Olympics, also at Wimbledon, and the US Open to look forward to, after which a career which has yielded four singles titles in the slams will be brought to an end.Three of those came in New York, one at the Australian Open. Clijsters reached two finals at the French Open but never ventured beyond the semi-finals at Wimbledon.Romantics talked up her chances this fortnight, optimistic she might be able to summon one final great effort, but Kerber crushed those hopes, winning 6-1 6-1 on Court Three.Clijsters will enter retirement for a second time having previously taken two years out in which she became a mother. She offered a wave to the crowd as she departed. It was more in apology than farewell.'What I was thinking about was probably the match still,' she said. 'It wasn't so much about it being the last time. Not at all actually. I didn't really think about that.'I just had the feeling that there was absolutely nothing I could have done today to have won that match. I just felt my opponent was better on every level.'I think she played close to the perfect match.'I never had a chance to get into the match or where she dropped her level a little bit. She was on every level just too good: served better, returned better, and just in the rallies was hitting the ball very deep, very fast on to the bounce, anticipating really good as well.'I look forward to just watching her here in the rest of this tournament and seeing her in the future, how she does against different players.'Left-hander Kerber is having an outstanding year, collecting titles in Paris and Copenhagen and in the week prior to Wimbledon reaching the final at Eastbourne.Just 12 months ago she lost to Laura Robson in the first round at Wimbledon, but that is a distant memory for a player who went on to reach the US Open semi-finals within three months.The 24-year-old stands eighth in the world and is rising, and it was a case of an emerging force in women's tennis playing a fading great.Clijsters could not cope but said she would have no regrets about her Wimbledon fortunes over the years.'I won't be sorry about anything,' she said. 'I know that every time that I've played here I've given my best, and that's the only thing that I can try. 'Some days it's good, some days it's great, and some days it's not good enough.'Casting her mind back to that debut year in 1999, Clijsters recalled the clash with Graf, coincidentally for whom it was also her final Wimbledon. Graf won seven Wimbledon titles.'Playing Steffi here was for me definitely one of my dreams come true as a young up-and-coming player,' Clijsters said.'To be playing Steffi in her last Wimbledon was very, very special.'She compared her first All England Club visit to a Disneyland trip, spoke of how as a child she 'felt the magic coming through the television' as she watched the tournament from home, and said she would take away fond memories of being watched by family, including her late father Leo.Kerber, who goes on to play fellow German Sabine Lisicki in the quarter-finals, blanked thoughts of it being Clijsters' final Wimbledon from her mind until victory was secured.'It was nice to play against her because we never played before,' Kerber said. 'I had the chance now at her last Wimbledon to play against her. It's good that I won this match, for me.'She's a great player. She's a legend also for me. She won a lot of grand slams.'I knew that I needed to play until the last point because if I gave her a little chance she would take it.'I think that's her thing, that she's a fighter.
An unexpected fourth-round matchup on Monday pits Mikhail Youzhny against Denis Istomin. The winner will be on course for a likely quarterfinal meeting with Roger Federer.Mikhail Youzhny and Denis Istomin will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers when they clash in a surprising fourth-round affair on Monday at Wimbledon.They split their two previous encounters, although Istomin's win came via Youzhny retirement (Istomin led by a set three years ago in St. Petersburg). They most recently faced each other last season on the clay courts of Gstaad, where Youzhny prevailed 6-3, 6-2.Youzhny has quietly put together a solid 22-9 mark for the year. The 30-year-old Russian booked his place in the second week at the All-England Club thanks to victories overDonald Young, Inigo Cervantes, and world No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic.Istomin finds himself in the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career, having previously been to third rounds on three occasions (including once at Wimbledon). The 39th-ranked Uzbek outlasted Andreas Seppi 8-6 in the fifth in his opener before taking out both Igor Andreev and Alejandro Falla in four. Istomin is a decent 23-19 for his 2012 campaign.Youzhny is looking to get over the hump and into the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time in six fourth-round tries. The world No. 33 is far more experienced at this stage of majors than Istomin, so that could be a factor. Youzhny in four sets is the pick.
