Wimbledon Day 6 wrap: Djokovic, Kvitova out

In every Grand Slam there are days when multiple, usually lower-ranked seeds tumble out of the draw in surprising fashion. In some Grand Slams there are days when big names make a surprisingly early exit. Then there are days like today; days that nobody saw coming. These are the days that not only shock the tennis world, but the sporting world as a whole.

The men’s action:
Upset doesn’t quite cut it. Novak Djokovic losing to Andy Murray or Roger Federer these days is an upset. Novak Djokovic going out of Wimbledon in the third round is nigh on bewildering. The World No.1 has seen his dreams of a rare Golden Slam disappear in a cloud of chalk dust at the hands of American Sam Querrey. Trailing by two sets going into the match on Saturday, normal service appeared to have been resumed when Djokovic raced to the third 6-3 (leading 4-0 at one stage). But rain interrupted play again, and this time Querrey was the beneficiary. The fourth set was tight, the tiebreak tighter, and the big serving World No.41 edged it at the death to claim a famous 7-6(8) 6-1 3-6 7-6(5) victory.

“It’s disappointing, of course, losing at a grand slam hurts more than any other tournament. There is no doubt about that,” Djokovic said. “Congratulation to Sam. He played a terrific match.”

On days like today other matches tend to fade into the background, but there was still some serious tennis to be played. One man who will most certainly be rubbing his hands with glee at Djokovic’s demise is Ivan Lendl. Murray’s new coach watched on impassively (as ever) from the player’s box as the Brit dismissed Aussie John Millman in emphatic fashion 6-3 7-5 6-2.

Milos Raonic will fancy his Wimbledon chances even more now, too. The Canadian, who is moving quietly and confidently through the draw, dispatched grass court gun Jack Sock in three on Centre, 7-6(2) 6-4 7-6(1).

Elsewhere, Kei Nishikori downed Andrey Kuznetsov 7-5 6-3 7-5; Marin Cilic blasted his way past Lukas Lacko; Steve Johnson ended Grigor Dimitrov’s rare run of form; and Bernard Tomic was impressive in his 6-2 6-4 6-4 win over Roberto Bautista Agut.

As is customary at Wimbledon 2016, there were also a few big matches that didn’t quite make it across the finish line today. Nick Kyrgios and Feliciano Lopez are locked at a set apiece; Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has started a fightback against John Isner after trailing by two sets to love; and Juan Martin Del Potro needs to summon a fightback against Lucas Pouille as he’s down 7-6(4) 6-7(6) 5-7.

The women’s draw:
Okay, so Petra Kvitova going out isn’t quite as surprising as Djokovic taking a hit, but it’s still worthy of a raised eyebrow. The two-time champion, who has struggled for form of late, was beaten in a tight, tense tussle 7-5 7-6(5) against Ekaterina Makarova.

“I felt stuck in the second round for a while. I think that the tournament was really weird for me this time,” a befuddled Kvitova said post match. “I was waiting all day long almost every day to be scheduled on, and didn’t really have a chance to finish or step on the court.”

Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber finally appears to have found her grass court feet. The German No.4 seed, who has never made it past the first round of Wimbledon, hit the heady heights of Week Two with a 7-6(11) 6-1 win over Carina Witthoeft.

Elsewhere, Simona Halep marched confidently on, dismissing Kiki Bertens 6-4 6-3; Madison Keys is definitely one to watch in Week Two, she ousted Alize Cornet 6-4 5-7 6-2; Cibulkova ended Bouchard’s charge in straight sets, Aga Radwanska drifted past Katerina Siniakova 6-3 6-1; and Slava Shvedova walloped Sabine Lisicki in straight sets.


Ones to watch:
You know it’s not a blockbuster Sunday when Vandeweghe v Vinci kicks off the action on Centre Court. Still, if you scour the draw there is still plenty to play with.

Tomas Berdych will not be looking forward to facing Alex Zverev on Centre (although the latter played an epic five setter on Saturday so that might soften him up). Meanwhile, Kyrgios v Lopez and Tsonga v Isner (if you like big serving) promises at least a smattering of big name action.

On the women’s side, it’s hard to see Serena being troubled by Annika Beck, but Sloane Stephens v Sveta Kuznetsova will be fun if they both show up. Meanwhile, Bacsinszky v Pavlyuchenkova pits the two hardest names to spell in world tennis against one another, which could be a reason to watch (if you’re into that sort of thing).