WIMBLEDON, England — Before Venus Williams started her quarterfinal here, the ranking of her opponent, Tsvetana Pironkova, seemed inconsequential.
Then Yen-Hsun Lu knocked Andy Roddick from the tournament late Monday, and he shared two important things with Pironkova — a high-profile American opponent and a world ranking of 82. From this strange coincidence, sprang another upset.
Before this tournament, Pironkova had won all of one match at Wimbledon in her career. On Tuesday, she captured her fifth victory this fortnight, a 6-2, 6-3 dismantling of Williams, the second-ranked player in the world.
Her anticipated semifinal with Kim Clijsters, the No. 8 seed, failed to materialize on either end. Shortly after Pironkova toppled Williams, Clijsters also lost, to Vera Zvonareva, the No. 21 seed from Russia, who lost the first five times that she met Clijsters, yet prevailed in their latest match, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Zvonareva and Pironkova will meet Thursday in the semifinals, two unknowns scrapping for a final ticket.
“Right now, women’s tennis is at a very high level,” Zvonareva said, in way of explanation for the upsets. “There is a lot of good competition.”
For Williams, it felt like 2006 all over again, another bad omen. Over the last decade, at least one Williams sister advanced to every Wimbledon final, and four times, both did. In every year, that is, except 2006, when Amélie Mauresmo topped Justine Henin.
That year also marked the last time Pironkova and Williams played. The result of that match, in the first round of the Australian Open, was as similar as it was shocking.
Pironkova has never won a tournament on the WTA Tour, but she now holds two victories over Venus Williams and a winning record in their three meetings. She also secured her spot in the Wimbledon semifinals, which grew more unlikely, in terms of match-ups, by the hour Tuesday.
Williams looked as shocked as anybody when the first set ended. She appeared to swing momentum back in her direction, too, with an early service break in the second set.
But as stunned family members looked on, Williams appeared tentative and tight. She fell behind, 5-2, and dropped a backhand volley into the net. This set up the first of three match points, and while Williams managed to squeeze out another game, Pironkova eventually prevailed.
The winning shot came when Williams missed a volley wide. Pironkova fell briefly on her back in celebration, then trotted to the net, where Williams forced a smile and the crowd applauded the first upset.
Clijsters entered her quarterfinal on less rest than Zvonareva, who battered Jelena Jankovic, the fourth seed, before Jankovic retired with a back injury. Meanwhile, Clijsters needed three sets to defeat Justine Henin on Monday.
Zvonareva challenged Clijsters from the outset, narrowly losing two long deuce games on Clijsters’s serve, attacking with furious, flat, deep groundstrokes. Clijsters said the pressure felt permanent and forced her to aim for the lines to open up the court.
But Clijsters also reminded reporters that she was not even a year into her comeback. Perhaps her magical run to the United States Open championship last September raised expectations beyond a manageable level.
She pulled out of the French Open with an ankle injury and missed, she said, at least three tournaments she had planned to play leading up to Wimbledon. Clijsters arrived here rusty, and in the second week, it showed.
Since returning, Clijsters said she faced constant questions about how the tour had changed in her absence. Tuesday at Wimbledon, she said, provided proof.
“I really feel there are a lot of the girls out there who can beat the top players, maybe just not on a consistent basis,” she said.
Then Yen-Hsun Lu knocked Andy Roddick from the tournament late Monday, and he shared two important things with Pironkova — a high-profile American opponent and a world ranking of 82. From this strange coincidence, sprang another upset.
Before this tournament, Pironkova had won all of one match at Wimbledon in her career. On Tuesday, she captured her fifth victory this fortnight, a 6-2, 6-3 dismantling of Williams, the second-ranked player in the world.
Her anticipated semifinal with Kim Clijsters, the No. 8 seed, failed to materialize on either end. Shortly after Pironkova toppled Williams, Clijsters also lost, to Vera Zvonareva, the No. 21 seed from Russia, who lost the first five times that she met Clijsters, yet prevailed in their latest match, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Zvonareva and Pironkova will meet Thursday in the semifinals, two unknowns scrapping for a final ticket.
“Right now, women’s tennis is at a very high level,” Zvonareva said, in way of explanation for the upsets. “There is a lot of good competition.”
For Williams, it felt like 2006 all over again, another bad omen. Over the last decade, at least one Williams sister advanced to every Wimbledon final, and four times, both did. In every year, that is, except 2006, when Amélie Mauresmo topped Justine Henin.
That year also marked the last time Pironkova and Williams played. The result of that match, in the first round of the Australian Open, was as similar as it was shocking.
Pironkova has never won a tournament on the WTA Tour, but she now holds two victories over Venus Williams and a winning record in their three meetings. She also secured her spot in the Wimbledon semifinals, which grew more unlikely, in terms of match-ups, by the hour Tuesday.
Williams looked as shocked as anybody when the first set ended. She appeared to swing momentum back in her direction, too, with an early service break in the second set.
But as stunned family members looked on, Williams appeared tentative and tight. She fell behind, 5-2, and dropped a backhand volley into the net. This set up the first of three match points, and while Williams managed to squeeze out another game, Pironkova eventually prevailed.
The winning shot came when Williams missed a volley wide. Pironkova fell briefly on her back in celebration, then trotted to the net, where Williams forced a smile and the crowd applauded the first upset.
Clijsters entered her quarterfinal on less rest than Zvonareva, who battered Jelena Jankovic, the fourth seed, before Jankovic retired with a back injury. Meanwhile, Clijsters needed three sets to defeat Justine Henin on Monday.
Zvonareva challenged Clijsters from the outset, narrowly losing two long deuce games on Clijsters’s serve, attacking with furious, flat, deep groundstrokes. Clijsters said the pressure felt permanent and forced her to aim for the lines to open up the court.
But Clijsters also reminded reporters that she was not even a year into her comeback. Perhaps her magical run to the United States Open championship last September raised expectations beyond a manageable level.
She pulled out of the French Open with an ankle injury and missed, she said, at least three tournaments she had planned to play leading up to Wimbledon. Clijsters arrived here rusty, and in the second week, it showed.
Since returning, Clijsters said she faced constant questions about how the tour had changed in her absence. Tuesday at Wimbledon, she said, provided proof.
“I really feel there are a lot of the girls out there who can beat the top players, maybe just not on a consistent basis,” she said.
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