Upset of Kvitova delights Jankovic
LONDON — About an hour after flopping on her back and kicking her feet overhead to celebrate a stunning comeback from a set and a break down against defending Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, Jelena Jankovic still was giddy.
“I cannot stop smiling. … I was very brave at the end. You know, here I am,” she said through a giggle. “Unbelievable.”
Jankovic kept using that word — “unbelievable” — as if trying to convince herself it was true that, despite never having much success on grass courts, she had put together a 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory Saturday over the No. 2-seeded Kvitova, who claimed the 2011 and 2014 titles at the All England Club.
“I was a little bit better at the end,” the 28th-seeded Jankovic said. “I was a little bit lucky, as well.”
The 30-year-old Serbian didn’t come out of nowhere: She was the runnerup at the 2008 U.S. Open and finished that season ranked No. 1. But she has never been past the fourth round at Wimbledon, hadn’t even made it that far since 2010, and won only one of five matches at the grass-court major over the last four years.
Kvitova, who led 4-2 in the second set, also had a difficult time processing things.
“I’m not really sure what happened out there,” she said. “Not to be in the second week of (my) favorite tournament … is really sad. I don’t really know what I can say.”
After the traditional middle Sunday off, play resumes Monday. The top half of the women’s draw includes the most noteworthy matchup: Serena Williams vs. Venus Williams, meeting at a major for the first time since 2009. Those two, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka give that side of the bracket 34 Grand Slam titles.
The men’s matchups that were determined Saturday: seven-time champion Roger Federer against No. 20 Roberto Bautista Agut, 2013 champion Andy Murray against No. 23 Ivo Karlovic, No. 22 Viktor Troicki against Vasek Pospisil, and 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych against No. 12 Gilles Simon.