Defending champ Muguruza ousted Last year’s finalist Cilic also beaten in a day of upsets at the All England Club
Wozniacki, No. 4 Sloane Stephens, No. 5 Elina Svitolina, No. 6 Caroline Garcia and No. 8 Petra Kvitova on the way out so far, along with five-time major champion Maria Sharapova. Those departures leave No. 1 Simona Halep, the French Open champion who won in straight sets Thursday, and No. 7 Karolina Pliskova in the field, along with seventime Wimbledon champion Serena Williams, who is seeded 25th, and five-time champ Venus Williams, who is No. 9.
“I mean, anyone, on a good day, can beat anyone,” Van Uytvanck said. “That’s what I think. I still think the top players, their average level is higher than, let’s say, sub-top players. But anyone on a good day can beat anyone, for sure.”
Sure seems that way, particularly this week. Among the men, too. Resumes and past performances do not matter. At all.
Marin Cilic, for example, entered his second-round match with all sorts of advantages in experience and success over his opponent, including a runner-up finish at the All England Club a year ago and a U.S. Open title in 2014.
So when Cilic took a twosets-to-none lead against a guy who began the week with records of 0-2 at Wimbledon and 6-15 at all majors, it appeared the No. 3 seed was on his way to a straightforward victory and a step closer to a potential semifinal rematch against defending champion Roger
Hold that thought. The outcome that seemed obvious vanished, and Cilic is gone, giving away a big edge in a 3-6, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-5 loss to 82nd-ranked Guido Pella of Argentina in a match completed Thursday after being suspended midway through the third set because of rain the evening before. “A big surprise,” Pella said. Cilic called it a “big disappointment.”
“Just didn’t feel so good. I was not as accurate as yesterday,” he said. “I was just missing some balls, giving him chance to keep playing.”
His exit means the highest-seeded man No. 1 Federer possibly could face before the final as he bids for a record-extending ninth Wimbledon title would be No. 8 Kevin Anderson or No. 9 John Isner. They’re two of the tour’s biggest servers, and both won contests carried over from Wednesday.
Isner hit 64 aces and saved two match points in his victory. In another suspended match, three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka lost to qualifier Thomas Fabbiano of Italy.
On the other half of the draw, two past champions, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, both advanced in straight sets. Not all went smoothly for Djokovic, though: He was visited by a trainer after feeling pain in his left knee over the last couple of games because of what he termed “a bad move” during a point.
“It seems like it’s nothing major. Hopefully, tomorrow I’ll see @ the practice session how it feels,” the 12-time major champion said. “Hopefully it’s going to be fine.” Federer.