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Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Second-seeded Cara Black and Liezel Huber upended Katarina Srebotnik and Ai Sugiyama to win the Wimbledon women's doubles final on Sunday.
Black and Huber dropped the first set but roared back to take the final two frames over the fourth-seeded Srebotnik and Ai Sugiyama, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Roger Federer outlasted Rafael Nadal in a grueling five-set classic to win his fifth consecutive Wimbledon final on Sunday.
The Super Swiss becomes just the second man in the Open Era to capture five straight Wimbledon championships. Swedish icon Bjorn Borg turned the trick previously from 1976-80
The top-seeded/World No. 1 Federer used his legendary conditioning to overwhelm the second-seeded Nadal in the final set to secure things. It took nearly four hours for him to down the talented Spaniard 7-6 (9-7), 4-6, 7-6 (7-3), 2-6, 6-2, and claim his 11th Grand Slam title.
Federer is now a dominating 38-4 lifetime at the All England Club and upped his record grass-court winning streak to 54, including 34 straight at Wimbledon.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Top-seeded Americans Bob and Mike Bryan dropped their Wimbledon men's doubles final to Frenchmen Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra on Sunday.
The 10th-seeded Clement and Llodra lost the first set in a tiebreaker but battled back and dominated the twins, who were appearing in their third straight Wimbledon final.
With the 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 victory, Clement and Llodra became the first French men's doubles champions at Wimbledon in 74 years.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - American Venus Williams captured her fourth title at Wimbledon after defeating 18th-seeded Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli in Saturday's lucrative title match.
In the first-ever meeting between the two, Williams, the 23rd seed, dominated the match from the start and won 6-4, 6-1 on Centre Court.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - In one of the biggest upsets in the history of women's tennis, 18th-seeded Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli stunned top-seeded and reigning world No. 1 Justine Henin to reach the women's final at Wimbledon. The upstart Bartoli will be opposed by three-time champion Venus Williams in Saturday's lucrative title match.
After getting leveled by the six-time Grand Slam event champion Henin in the opening set, Bartoli steadied her nerves to win the second and promptly throttled the two-time Wimbledon runner-up in the third set to record an improbable 1-6, 7-5, 6-1 decision in the second of Friday's semifinals on Centre Court.
Henin struggled mightily amid windy conditions on a roof-less Centre Court, while Bartoli, who plays two-fisted tennis from both sides, powered her way through the blustery conditions.
Bartoli charged out to a 5-0 lead in the final set, which ultimately came to a close when Henin sent one final forehand beyond the baseline to make her French counterpart one of the most unlikely of Wimbledon finalists.
The 22-year-old Bartoli prevailed in 1 hour, 55 minutes with the help of 30 unforced errors by Henin. The Belgian stalwart struck 10 more winners than the Frenchwoman (37-27), but Bartoli managed one more break of serve (6-5) in the amazing victory.
Bartoli competed in her first-ever Grand Slam semifinal on Friday and will now compete in her first major final on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Henin had been 2-0 lifetime against Bartoli, including an easy grass-court semifinal victory at Eastbourne just last month.
Henin was last year's Wimbledon runner-up to another Frenchwoman, Amelie Mauresmo. The Belgian star is now 2-3 in her career Wimbledon semis.
In addition to her runner-up finish here last year, Henin also lost in the 2001 Wimbledon finale, against Venus.
The previously high-flying Henin had won her last 12 Grand Slam matches, including a third straight and fourth overall French Open title last month.
Henin still needs Wimbledon to complete a career Golden Slam. She already owns Australian, French, U.S. Open and Olympic titles, not to mention a Fed Cup championship. She was trying to reach her sixth Grand Slam final in as many tries, as she appeared in all four major finals last year, skipped this year's Aussie Open and returned to the French Open final last month.
The diminutive Henin had won her last 16 matches on tour, including a title in Eastbourne the week before Wimbledon '07 commenced.
Meanwhile, the former world No. 1 Venus secured a berth in her sixth career Wimbledon final by beating sixth-seeded Serbian Ana Ivanovic at the storied All England Club.
The 23rd-seeded Williams doused the French Open runner-up Ivanovic in 6-2, 6-4 fashion on Day 11 of this fortnight. Williams, now a flawless 6-0 in her semis here, is now a perfect 3-0 in her career against Ivanovic.
An elated Williams moved on in 1 hour, 25 minutes by committing a mere 11 unforced errors, compared to 24 for a shaky Ivanovic. The American also piled up four service breaks, compared to only one for her overmatched Serbian counterpart.
The 27-year-old Williams is now 50-7 lifetime at the All England Club. She owns five major titles, including Wimbledon championships in 2000, 2001 and 2005, and was the 2002 and 2003 runner-up here to her younger sister Serena.
Venus is 5-6 in her major finals, with her last trip to a Grand Slam title bout resulting in a victory right here two years ago. The veteran star owns 34 titles on the WTA Tour, including one in Memphis earlier this season.
Williams and Bartoli will meet for the first in their careers here on Saturday.
Bartoli, who had never advanced beyond the fourth round at a major before this week, owns just three titles on the circuit, with all three coming last year. She was a runner-up at an event in Prague earlier this season.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Reigning four-time champion Roger Federer and last year's runner-up Rafael Nadal charged into the semifinals, while two-time finalist Andy Roddick lost to talented Frenchman Richard Gasquet in Friday's quarterfinal action at Wimbledon.
The top-seeded/world No. 1 Federer needed two days to get past 20th-seeded former top-ranked star Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-6 (7-2), 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 on the famed Centre Court. The match was tied at 5-5 in the first set here on Thursday when rain halted play for the day.
Federer prevailed in 2 hours, 16 minutes with the help of 15 aces among his 51 winners and five service breaks. The 27-year-old Ferrero recorded 32 fewer winners and only broke Federer's serve on two occasions.
The high-flying Swiss, now 36-4 lifetime at the All England Club, wound up dropping his first set of the fortnight against the Spanish Ferrero, the 2003 French Open champion.
"OK, a set is lost, but a match isn't lost," Federer said.
This marks Federer's first result here in a week, as the combination of a scheduled day off, inclement weather and a withdrawal by his scheduled fourth- round opponent, Tommy Haas, kept him idle here for five days.
"It was hard for me," said Federer. "I had many days off. I'm just really happy I came through it and I'm back in the rhythm now."
Federer's grass-court winning streak is now up to 52, including a 32-match string here at the All England Club. The super Swiss already owns 10 Grand Slam titles and is trying to become only the second man in the Open Era to capture five straight Wimbledon championships. Swedish icon Bjorn Borg turned the trick here from 1976-80.
The 25-year-old Federer has appeared in a record eight straight Grand Slam finals and landed in the semifinals in his last 13 majors. He beat Nadal in last year's Wimbledon finale and lost to the Spaniard in the last two French Open title bouts.
Federer, who's also the reigning Australian and U.S. Open champ, will meet the surprising Gasquet in Saturday's semifinals.
A second-seeded Nadal, the reigning three-time French Open champion, reached his second straight Wimbledon semi by dousing seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych 7-6 (7-1), 6-4, 6-2 on Centre Court on Day 11 here.
Nadal moved on in 2 hours, 7 minutes with the help of 30 unforced errors by his fellow 21-year-old Berdych. The powerful Spaniard also piled up four key breaks, compared to only one for his 6-foot-5 counterpart.
Unlike the well-rested Federer, Nadal played for a fifth straight day here on Friday.
Nadal's semifinal opponent will be rapidly-rising Serbian star Novak Djokovic, who lost to Nadal in last month's French Open semis. The Spaniard is 4-1 lifetime against the Serb, including a 3-1 record this season.
A 12th-seeded Gasquet came all the way back to stun the third-seeded Roddick 4-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-3), 8-6 on Court 1. Roddick was up two sets and 4-2 in the third when Gasquet mounted an unlikely comeback.
Roddick won his first 14 sets at this fortnight before Gasquet turned their round-of-eight match around on Friday.
Gasquet stunned Roddick in 3 hours, 34 minutes. The Frenchman actually struck more aces than the massive-serving American (23-22) and piled up 33 more winners (93-60) than Roddick.
The 24-year-old Roddick is a former world No. 1 and captured his lone Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open in 2003. He lost to Federer in the 2004 and 2005 Wimbledon finals.
Gasquet, who had never won a five-set match before Friday, will meet Federer for a seventh time, with the supreme Swiss holding a 5-1 all-time advantage. Federer beat Gasquet in the first round at Wimbledon a year ago and has won five straight matches in their series.
The 21-year-old Gasquet will perform in his first-ever major semi on Saturday.
In another marathon quarterfinal on Friday, a fourth-seeded Djokovic landed in his second semi in the last two majors by outlasting 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (11-9), 6-7 (3-7), 4-6, 7-5 on Court 1. A fatigued Djokovic needed five hours to sneak past the 2006 Wimbledon semifinalist Baghdatis. The victory marked the fourth-longest match in modern Wimbledon history. And the longest Wimbledon singles match ever played on one day lasted only five minutes longer than this Djokovic-Baghdatis epic.
Djokovic recorded a huge service break to grab a 6-5 lead in the fifth set and closed out a game Baghdatis by holding his quality serve in the 12th game of the stanza. The Serb fired 12 aces among his 58 winners on Day 11. The Cypriot struck 16 more winners than Djokovic, but also piled up 10 more unforced errors (60-50) in the disappointing setback.
A weary Djokovic played 9 hours, 12 minutes of tennis over the last two days here. He required 4 hours, 12 minutes to stave off former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt here on Thursday and required some on-court treatment from a tour trainer on Friday.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Former world No. 1 star Venus Williams moved into familiar territory on Thursday, as she reached the semifinals at Wimbledon for the sixth time in her great career. The powerful American will face sixth-seeded Serbian Ana Ivanovic in Friday's women's final four at the venerable All England Club.
The 23rd-seeded Williams, a three-time Wimbledon champion, doused fifth- seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3, 6-4 in 1 hour, 25 minutes on the famed Centre Court. The steady Kuznetsova was the 2004 U.S. Open champion and reached last year's French Open finale.
Venus had her big serve broken only once by Kuznetsova, who, in turn, was broken three times by her American counterpart.
The 27-year-old Williams, who is the oldest woman still standing here, is now 49-7 lifetime at the All England Club. She owns five major titles, including Wimbledon championships in 2000, 2001 and 2005, and was the 2002 and 2003 runner-up here to her younger sister Serena.
The French Open finalist Ivanovic continued her winning ways at the last two majors by overcoming 14th-seeded Czech Nicole Vaidisova 4-6, 6-2, 7-5.
Ivanovic advanced on her second match point when a rattled Vaidisova committed a double fault after blowing three match points of her own only minutes earlier. A sloppy Vaidisova wound up with six double faults and 39 unforced errors, as Ivanovic moved on in just under two hours on Centre Court.
Friday's other semi will pit top-seeded/world No. 1 Belgian Justine Henin against 18th-seeded Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli. The 22-year-old Bartoli will perform in his first-ever Grand Slam semifinal.
The six-time Grand Slam event champion Henin, last year's Wimbledon runner-up to France's Amelie Mauresmo, will appear in her fifth Wimbledon semi (2-2). The gritty Belgian also finished as the runner-up here in 2001, when she lost to Venus in the final while still a teenager.
The high-flying Henin has won her last 12 Grand Slam matches, including a third straight and fourth overall French Open title last month.
A determined Henin still needs Wimbledon to complete a career Golden Slam. She already owns Australian, French, U.S. Open and Olympic titles, not to mention a Fed Cup championship. She's trying to reach her sixth Grand Slam final in as many tries, as she appeared in all four major finals last year, skipped this year's Aussie Open and returned to the French Open final last month.
The red-hot Henin has won her last 16 matches on tour, including a grass- court title in Eastbourne the week before Wimbledon 2007 commenced.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Last year's runner-up Rafael Nadal battled all the way back to win his fourth-round match Thursday and reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Rising Serbian star Novak Djokovic also secured a berth in the round of eight by taking out former champion Lleyton Hewitt in a dramatic bout.
The second-seeded Nadal fought back after dropping the first two sets to defeat 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2. The capable Youzhny was slowed by a back problem over the final three sets.
Nadal needed 3 hours, 5 minutes to record his comeback, which he did with the help of six service breaks. The Spaniard played a clean match by committing a mere 18 unforced errors over five sets.
The reigning three-time French Open champ Nadal was last year's Wimbledon runner-up to the great Roger Federer and lost to Youzhny in the 2006 U.S. Open quarters.
Nadal's quarterfinal opponent on Friday will be seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych, who topped 19th-seeded Swedish veteran Jonas Bjorkman 6-4, 6-0, 6-7 (6-8), 6-0.
Berdych fired 15 aces at the ageless Bjorkman, who failed to break his Czech counterpart's serve while Berdych piled up a whopping seven breaks of the Swede. Berdych also struck 31 more winners (48-17) than the overmatched Bjorkman.
The 35-year-old Bjorkman reached the Wimbledon semis last year, only to be destroyed by the amazing Federer.
The 6-foot-5 Berdych will now appear in his first-ever Grand Slam quarterfinal.
A fourth-seeded Djokovic fought his way into the quarters by holding off a 16th-seeded Hewitt 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-2), 4-6, 7-6 (7-5).
Djokovic moved on by converting on his third match point against the gritty Hewitt. The Serb needed 4 hours, 12 minutes to dismiss Hewitt, who withstood a barrage of 56 winners, including 17 aces, from Djokovic, who also piled up 49 unforced errors on Day 10.
The former world No. 1 Hewitt captured the second of his two Grand Slam event titles here Wimbledon in 2002.
Djokovic reached the French Open semifinals last month, only to lose to the reigning king of clay Nadal.
Also advancing to the quarters was 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, who upended sixth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5), 6-3. The 2006 Australian Open finalist Baghdatis reached the Wimbledon semis last season.
Baghdatis advanced in 2 hours, 9 minutes, as he broke Davydenko's serve six times while the Russian piled up 39 unforced errors.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Former champion Lleyton Hewitt was a third-round victor on a rainy Tuesday at Wimbledon.
The 16th-seeded Hewitt got past 22nd-seeded Argentine Guillermo Canas 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 on yet another rain-interrupted day at the venerable All England Club. Hewitt was leading 3-1 in the third set when the match was suspended because of rain here on Monday.
The former world No. 1 Hewitt is a two-time major titlist, including a Wimbledon championship in 2002. He also captured a U.S. Open crown, in 2001.
Another former top-ranked star, Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero, booked a spot in the quarterfinals by handling Serbian Janko Tipsarevic 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5). The 2003 French Open champion Ferrero, seeded 20th at this grass-court fortnight, is rewarded with a match against reigning four-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer.
Ferrero will appear in his first-ever Wimbledon quarter and is only the fifth Spaniard in the Open Era to advance this far at the All England Club.
Sixth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko, who typically plays his worst tennis on grass, moved into the fourth round by handling inconsistent Frenchman Gael Monfils 6-3, 7-5, 6-3.
Davydenko should have his hands full with 10th-seeded 2006 Wimbledon semifinalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus in the fourth round on Wednesday.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Czech teenager Nicole Vaidisova dismissed defending champion Amelie Mauresmo in Tuesday's fourth-round action at Wimbledon.
Mauresmo lost her 10-match winning streak at the All England Club when the 14th-seeded Vaidisova stunned the fourth seed in 7-6 (8-6), 4-6, 6-1 fashion on the famed Centre Court on yet another rain-interrupted day at the year's third Grand Slam event.
After dropping a tough first set via tiebreak, Mauresmo fought back to sneak out a second-set victory and force a deciding third in between rain drops on Day 8.
But the former world No. 1 Mauresmo came up flat in the final stanza, and bowed out by dumping one final forehand return into the net after 2 hours, 20 minutes of tennis.
Mauresmo swatted 13 aces, but also piled up 14 double faults and had her serve broken five times by the slugging Vaidisova. The French star was also sloppy at the net, where she converted on only 26-of-50 approaches.
The two-time major titlist Mauresmo beat Belgian star Justine Henin in last year's Wimbledon and Australian Open finals. The athletic Frenchwoman was seeking a fifth trip into the Wimbledon quarters.
The 18-year-old Vaidisova will appear in her first-ever Wimbledon quarterfinal, where she will meet French Open runner-up Ana Ivanovic of Serbia or Russian Nadia Petrova.
Fifth-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova eased into the quarters by dousing 16-year-old rising Austrian Tamira Paszek 6-3, 6-2. The 2004 U.S. Open champion and 2006 French Open runner-up Kuznetsova will now compete in her third Wimbledon quarterfinal in five years.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Top-seeded and 2006 runner-up Justine Henin and two-time winner Serena Williams will square off in the quarterfinals, while three-time champion Venus Williams survived her third- round match Monday to setup a fourth-round showdown with Maria Sharapova at a rain-plagued Wimbledon.
The world No. 1 and two-time Wimbledon runner-up Henin cruised past 15th- seeded Swiss Patty Schnyder 6-2, 6-2 on yet another rain-interrupted day at the All England Club. Henin will now meet Serena in a quarterfinal showdown here.
Henin erased the lefthanded Schnyder in 56 minutes to reach her fifth Wimbledon quarterfinal.
The 25-year-old Henin is a six-time major titlist, including a third straight and fourth overall French Open title last month. The Belgian stalwart lost to Amelie Mauresmo in last year's Wimbledon final and gave way to Venus in the 2001 title bout here.
Henin still needs Wimbledon to complete a career Golden Slam. She already owns Australian, French, U.S. Open and Olympic titles, not to mention a Fed Cup championship. She's trying to reach her sixth Grand Slam final in as many tries, as she appeared in all four major finals last year, skipped this year's Aussie Open and returned to the French Open final last month.
The diminutive Henin has won her last 15 matches on tour, including a grass- court title in Eastbourne the week before Wimbledon 2007 commenced.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych and 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis snuck in third-round wins in between rain drops Monday at Wimbledon 2007.
Berdych, who titled on a grass court in Halle just three weeks ago, finished off Korean Hyung-Taik Lee 6-4, 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-3) in a match that was suspended because of rain here on Saturday. Berdych will meet veteran Swede Jonas Bjorkman in the fourth round.
The 2006 Wimbledon semifinalist Baghdatis, meanwhile, waltzed pasted 23rd- seeded Argentine David Nalbandian 6-2, 7-5, 6-0 on Day 7 of this wet fortnight. The 2002 Wimbledon runner-up Nalbandian appeared to throw in the towel in the third set against the '06 Australian Open runner-up Baghdatis.
Second-seeded Spanish star Rafael Nadal was leading 28th-seeded Swede Robin Soderling 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 4-6, 2-0 when their bout was stopped for the day. Nadal was two points away from victory in the third-set tiebreak when rain forced the players off the court. Following a lengthy delay, Soderling managed to capture the third and fourth sets before Nadal went up a break in the fifth, only to be interrupted by rain once again.
Other third-round wins came for 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny and a 19th-seeded Bjorkman, as Youzhny dropped 18th-seeded Finn Jarkko Nieminen 7-5, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 and the ageless 35-year-old Bjorkman knocked out 36-year-old Aussie Wayne Arthurs 6-2, 6-1, 6-4. Arthurs had already announced that he would retire from the ATP when his 2007 Wimbledon run came to an end.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Top-seeded Justine Henin marched on at Wimbledon Monday with an easy straight-set victory over Patty Schnyder.
Henin, a six-time major titlist and runner-up here last year, disposed of the 15th-seeded Swiss, 6-2, 6-2, in just 56 minutes to reach the quarterfinals.
The world No. 1 will now face either two-time former Wimbledon champion Serena Williams or Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova in the quarters.
In third round action on Monday, fifth-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova upended Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 6-3 and No. 6 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia downed France's Aravane Rezai 6-3, 6-2.
Other third-round winners included 11th-seeded Russian Nadia Petrova, who dismissed Spain's Virginia Ruano Pascual 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), and No. 14 Nicole Vaidisova of the Czech Republic, who got the best of Belarus' Victoria Azarenka 6-4, 6-2.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Eight third-round matches were on Saturday's schedule at Wimbledon, and all eight were wiped out because of rain at the All England Club.
Rain has now interrupted play on five of the first six days of this 2007 fortnight.
No less than 12 seeded players were on the Day-6 schedule, including No. 2 Spaniard Rafael Nadal, fourth-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic and former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt.
The reigning three-time French Open titlist and 2006 Wimbledon runner-up Nadal was scheduled to meet 28th-seeded Swede Robin Soderling, but they'll have to wait until Monday, as Sunday marks the traditional day of rest at the year's third Grand Slam event.
Nadal lost to reigning four-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer in last year's finale here.
Djokovic was slated to meet German Nicolas Kiefer, while a 16th-seeded Hewitt was supposed to battle 22nd-seeded Argentine Guillermo Canas on Day 6. The former world No. 1 Hewitt is a two-time major titlist, including a Wimbledon championship in 2002. The fiery Aussie is the last man to title here besides the amazing Federer.Seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych was leading Korean Hyung-Taik Lee 6-4, 2-3 when their bout was suspended due to inclement weather. They were the only men to take to the courts here on Saturday.
Other bouts washed away on Saturday had sixth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko going up against Frenchman Gael Monfils, 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis taking on 23rd-seeded Argentine David Nalbandian, 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny meeting 18th-seeded Finn Jarkko Nieminen and 19th-seeded Swede Jonas Bjorkman tangling with Aussie Wayne Arthurs. Nalbandian was the '02 Wimbledon runner-up to Hewitt.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Second-seeded former champion Maria Sharapova of Russia and fourth-seeded reigning titlist Amelie Mauresmo of France were a pair of third-round winners on a rainy Day 6 at Wimbledon.
The former world No. 1 Sharapova flew past 26th-seeded Japanese Ai Sugiyama 6-3, 6-3, while the former top-ranked Mauresmo won her 10th straight match at the venerable All England Lawn Tennis Club by pasting 28th-seeded Italian Mara Santangelo 6-1, 6-2 in between rain delays on the famed Centre Court.
The start of Saturday's play was delayed by rain, and the wet weather returned just as Sharapova dismissed Sugiyama on Court 1.
The two-time Grand Slam event champion Sharapova was the 2004 Wimbledon champ and is the reigning U.S. Open titlist. She was also this year's Australian Open runner-up to American Serena Williams.
Mauresmo, who is also a two-time major titlist, beat Belgian star Justine Henin in last year's Wimbledon and Aussie Open finals.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Rain has prevented third-round singles action from resuming Saturday at Wimbledon 2007.
Both the men's and women's draws commenced third-round play here on Friday, but wet weather has kept players off the courts so far on Day 6 of this grass- court fortnight.
If and when players see action on Saturday, second-seeded Rafael Nadal, fourth-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic, sixth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko, 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis and former champion Lleyton Hewitt are slated for play on the men's side, while the women's draw will feature matches for second-seeded Maria Sharapova, fourth-seeded Amelie Mauresmo, fifth-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, sixth-seeded Ana Ivanovic and three-time titlist Venus Williams.
The reigning three-time French Open champion and 2006 Wimbledon runner-up Nadal is scheduled to meet Swede Robin Soderling, while Baghdatis will meet 23rd-seeded and 2002 Wimbledon runner-up David Nalbandian and the '02 titlist Hewitt will encounter 22nd-seeded Guillermo Canas.
The 2004 Wimbledon champion, 2006 U.S. Open titlist and 2007 Aussie Open runner-up Sharapova will take on 26th-seeded Japanese Ai Sugiyama, while the reigning women's Wimbledon titlist Mauresmo will battle 28th-seeded Italian Mara Santangelo and the former world No. 1 and five-time Grand Slam event champion Williams will tangle with Japan's Akiko Morigami.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Top-seeded Belgian Justine Henin, Serbian Jelena Jankovic and two-time champion and former world No. 1 Serena Williams were a trio of third-round winners Friday at Wimbledon 2007.
Henin, who captured a third straight and fourth overall French Open title earlier this month, giving her six career Grand Slam titles, easily defeated Russian Elena Vesnina 6-1, 6-3 after the match was delayed about an hour in the second set due to rain.
Henin, the two-time Wimbledon runner-up, still needs a title here to complete a career Grand Slam.
Henin, now 25-6 at the All England Club, having won nine of her last 10 matches here, will meet 15th seed Patty Schnyder of Switzerland in the fourth round. Schnyder outlasted 24th seed Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine 6-4, 3-6, 8-6 in their third-round bout.
A third-seeded Jankovic came from behind to down Czech Lucie Safarova 5-7, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 to advance to round four. The rising star Jankovic reached the French Open semis three weeks ago, then captured a grass- court title in Birmingham by beating Maria Sharapova in the final and was a runner-up last week in The Netherlands.
In the fourth round, Jankovic will meet Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli, the 18th seed, who easily defeated No. 16 Shahar Peer of Israel 6-3, 6-2.
The seventh-seeded Williams improved to an impressive career record of 36-5 at Wimbledon after whipping Venezuelan Milagros Sequera 6-1, 6-0 in just 43 minutes.
The eight-time Grand Slam event champion Williams captured Wimbledon back-to- back in 2002 and 2003 and was the 2004 runner-up here to Sharapova. The American star captured this year's Australian Open by pasting Sharapova in the finale in Melbourne.
Up next for Williams will be No. 10 Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova, who rebounded from an opening set loss to defeat No. 19 Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
In an upset, five-time major titlist Martina Hingis was sent packing, as the ninth-seeded veteran lost to American Laura Granville 6-4, 6-2. Hingis captured Wimbledon as a 16-year-old 10 years ago, as she corralled three of the four Grand Slam titles back in 1997. The "Swiss Miss" hasn't secured a major championship since the 1999 Aussie Open.
There was another upset on Day 5 as No. 31 Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands outlasted eight seed Anna Chakvetadze of Russia 7-6 (10-8), 6-7 (5-7), 6-2.
On Saturday, the second-seeded Sharapova battles Ai Sugiyama as third-round action continues while No. 4 Amelie Mauresmo will play 26th seed Mara Santangelo. Svetlana Kuznetsova, the fifth seed, squares off against Agnieszka Radwanska and No. 6 Ana Ivanovic will play Aravane Rezai. Venus Williams will also be in action as she will take on Akiko Morigami.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Swiss superstar Roger Federer continued his quest for his fifth straight Wimbledon title as he posted a straight-set victory in the third round on Friday.
The top-seeded/world No. 1 Federer faced a former world No. 1 in Marat Safin of Russia and won 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4). It is his 51st successive win on grass.
The 25-year-old Federer is trying to become only the second man in the Open Era to win this event five years in a row, joining the legendary Bjorn Borg, who captured it from 1976-80. Federer has won his last 31 matches at the All England Club, while the Swedish Borg won 41 straight here from 1976-81 before finally losing to John McEnroe in the 1981 final.
The 10-time Grand Slam champion Federer is also the reigning Australian and U.S. Open titlist and was this year's French Open runner-up to Nadal. The amazing Swiss has played in a record eight straight Grand Slam finals, going 6-2. He beat Nadal in last year's Wimbledon finale and hasn't lost at the AEC since Croatia's Mario Ancic beat him in the first round back in 2002.
Federer, who is now 35-4 lifetime here, will next face 13th-seeded German Tommy Haas, who bounced back from a first set loss to down 21st-seeded Russian Dmitry Tursunov 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
There were three third round upsets on Friday as fifth-seeded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez, ninth-seeded American James Blake and 15th-seeded Croatian Ivan Ljubicic were all handed losses.
Gonzalez, the Australian Open runner-up, was handed a defeat in five sets by unseeded Serbian Janko Tipsarevic 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 8-6.
Blake took the first set, but then lost the next three to 20th-seeded Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4). Blake has never advanced beyond the third round at the All England Club.
Ljubicic won the first set of his match against Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu, but the dropped the next three 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-3.
Twelfth-seeded Frenchman Richard Gasquet marched on by leveling his countryman Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.
In unseeded play, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was a straight-set winner against Spain's Feliciano Lopez 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Second-seeded and former champion Maria Sharapova and three-time winner Venus Williams were easy second-round winners Thursday at Wimbledon.
The 2004 Wimbledon titlist Sharapova breezed past France's Severine Bremond 6-0, 6-3. The two-time major champion Sharapova was last year's U.S. Open champ and this year's Australian Open runner-up.
A 23rd-seeded Williams improved to a career 46-7 at the All England Club with a 6-2, 6-2 spanking of Czech Hana Sromova. The five-time Grand Slam event champion captured this grass-court extravaganza in 2000, 2001 and 2005 and was the 2002 and 2003 runner-up to her younger sister Serena.
Former U.S. Open champion and 2006 French Open runner-up Svetlana Kuznetsova handled American Bethanie Mattek 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, while 2007 French Open finalist Ana Ivanovic of Serbia bested American Meilen Tu 6-4, 6-3 to advance at the AEC. Kuznetsova and Ivanovic are seeded fifth and sixth here, respectively. Ivanovic gave way to reigning world No. 1 Justine Henin in the final at Roland Garros earlier this month.
Eighth-seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze cruised past Tatiana Poutchek of Belarus 6-2, 6-1, while 10th-seeded Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova struggled to top Russian veteran Elena Likhovtseva 7-5, 7-6 (7-3).
A surprise came when Japan's Akiko Morigami toppled 13th-seeded Russian Dinara Safina 6-4, 7-5.
In other second-round action involving top-16 seeds, No. 11 Russian Nadia Petrova pasted Indian Sania Mirza 6-2, 6-2; No. 12 Russian Elena Dementieva, a two-time Grand Slam runner-up, drubbed Czech Iveta Benesova 6-2, 6-2; No. 14 Czech Nicole Vaidisova vaulted past veteran Aussie Nicole Pratt 6-3, 6-2; and No. 15 Swiss Patty Schnyder overcame Italian Roberta Vinci 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Other seeded second-round winners were No. 19 Slovenian Katarina Srebotnik, No. 24 Ukrainian Alona Bondarenko, No. 25 Czech Lucie Safarova, No. 26 Japanese Ai Sugiyama, No. 28 Italian Mara Santangelo and No. 31 Dutchwoman Michaella Krajicek.
In some other upsets, Austrian Tamira Paszek took out 17th-seeded Frenchwoman Tatiana Golovin 6-2, 3-6, 6-1; Belarusian Victoria Azarenka erased 21st-seeded Italian Tathiana Garbin 6-1, 6-3; France's Aravane Rezai clipped 29th-seeded Italian Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 2-6, 6-4; and Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska leveled 32nd-seeded German Martina Muller 6-1, 4-0, retired.
One other second-round victor was veteran Spaniard Virginia Ruano Pascual.
Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Three-time champion Venus Williams was an easy winner on Thursday, while fifth-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova and surging Serbian star Ana Ivanovic also posted second-round wins at Wimbledon.
A 23rd-seeded Williams improved to a career 46-7 at the All England Club with a 6-2, 6-2 spanking of Czech Hana Sromova. The five-time Grand Slam event champion captured this grass-court extravaganza in 2000, 2001 and 2005 and was the 2002 and 2003 runner-up to her younger sister Serena.
The former U.S. Open champion and 2006 French Open runner-up Kuznetsova handled American Bethanie Mattek 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, while the 2007 French Open finalist and sixth-seeded Ivanovic bested American Meilen Tu 6-4, 6-3 to advance at the AEC. Ivanovic gave way to reigning world No. 1 Justine Henin in the final at Roland Garros earlier this month.
Eighth-seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze cruised past Tatiana Poutchek of Belarus 6-2, 6-1, while 10th-seeded Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova struggled to get past Russian veteran Elena Likhovtseva 7-5, 7-6 (7-3).
In other second-round action involving top-16 seeds, No. 11 Russian Nadia Petrova pasted Indian Sania Mirza 6-2, 6-2; No. 12 Russian Elena Dementieva, a two-time Grand Slam runner-up, drubbed Czech Iveta Benesova 6-2, 6-2; No. 14 Czech Nicole Vaidisova vaulted past veteran Aussie Nicole Pratt 6-3, 6-2; and No. 15 Swiss Patty Schnyder overcame Italian Roberta Vinci 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.
