First loss as world No. 1 for Kerber; Venus tumbles out
wuhan — Angelique Kerber suffered her first defeat as world number one when Petra Kvitova beat her 6-7(10) 7-5 6-4 in a marathon third- round match at the Wuhan Open in China on Wednesday.
German top seed Kerber saved three set points before a forehand error from Czech Kvitova handed the U.S. Open champion a tense first-set tiebreak. But Kvitova, showing the battling qualities that have brought her two Wimbledon titles, fought back to force a decider. Kvitova, seeded 14th, broke Kerber early in the third set to lead 4-2 and despite struggling with cramp, she held her nerve to convert her seventh match point after three hours and 20 minutes on court.
“At the end I think there is no loser. I did everything today. I was fighting until the end,” Kerber told reporters.
Kvitova will face Britain’s Johanna Career record for Kuznetsova against Venus Konta in the quarterfinals.
Svetlana Kuznetsova ousted defending champion Venus Williams 6-2, 6-2 to reach the Wuhan Open quarterfinals on Wednesday. Kuznetsova dominated Williams from the outset, breaking the American five times. She improved to 5-4 against Williams.
Earlier Simona Halep reached the Wuhan Open quarterfinals on Wednesday despite being knocked dizzy and forced to retire from a doubles match a day earlier.
The Romanian world number five beat Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3, 6-3 before detailing the heavy blow from a ball which left her with bruising to her head. Halep was struck by a shot fired from the baseline by her doubles partner Jelena Ostapenko, before retiring from the match on Tuesday evening.
“She hit me with the ball, like 150 kilometres (90 miles) per hour. I was dizzy in the first moment, but then was much better,” Halep said. “I feel pain all around here, but it’s okay,” she added, gesturing to the left side of her head.
Halep said she was cleared by doctors to play, and will meet American number nine Madison Keys in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
The Women’s Tennis Association doesn’t have the concussion protocols adopted by other sports to ensure players have fully recovered from blows to the head.
Concussions in tennis are rare — but they do happen, as when China’s Li Na was briefly knocked out in a fall during an Australian Open final in 2013. Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard cut short her season last year with concussion problems after she slipped and fell in the locker room during the US Open.
Former world number one Victoria Azarenka bowed out of the 2010 US Open after what was described as a “mild concussion” when she tripped getting off a treadmill. She lasted about half-anhour into her next match before collapsing on court and being taken off in a wheelchair.
Meanwhile, Australian doubles player Casey Dellacqua sustained a career-ending concussion at the China Open in 2015, retiring in May this year. Head injuries are an increasingly hot issue in sport, prompting a raft of rule changes in other sports. — Agencies