USA TODAY International Edition
Halep upset throws tourney into disarray
WIMBLEDON, England – It’s not considered far-fetched to assume the winner of a Grand Slam tennis tournament is most likely to come from among the top eight seeds.
But it certainly isn’t how it’s going at the very topsy-turvy Wimbledon this year as each day delivers another shocking upset in the women’s draw.
The latest casualty is none other than world No. 1 Simona Halep, fresh off of winning her first Grand Slam trophy in the French Open.
Halep squandered a 5-2 lead in the third set and had one match point before surrendering to 48th-ranked Hsieh Su-Wei of Taiwan 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 in a third-round encounter Saturday.
“It was really hard on grass court to do better,” Halep said. “The difficulty was bigger today because of her game. She played really well.”
Only seventh-seeded Karolina Pliskova has survived from the top eight to journey into the second week.
The other members of the top eight to fall: second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, third-seeded and defending champion Garbine Muguruza, fourth-seeded Sloane Stephens, fifth-seeded Elina Svitolina, sixth-seeded Caroline Garcia and eighth-seeded Petra Kvitova.
“Definitely I gave everything I had on the game side,” Halep said. “I was fighting till the end for every ball. I was just too negative to myself, talking too much. I’m just realistic and honest with myself. I accept that it was an unprofessional attitude from me.”
In previous visits here, Halep reached the 2014 semifinals and the 2016 and 2017 quarterfinals.
Hsieh has beaten three top 10 players in her career, and all of those victories took place at a Grand Slam tournament. She defeated eighth-ranked Johanna Konta at the 2017 French Open and third-ranked Muguruza at the 2018 Australian Open.
Hsieh has now advanced into the fourth round at a Grand Slam for the third time in her career. She will play Dominka Cibulkova, who upset 15thseeded Elise Mertens 6-2, 6-2.
“I was fighting till the end for every ball. I was just too negative to myself, talking too much.” Simona Halep On her loss
Cibulkova was meant to be the 32nd seeded player at Wimbledon but was bumped out of that placement when the Wimbledon seeding committee decided to seed 181st-ranked Serena Williams, returning from maternity leave, in the 25th position.
Williams now has to be considered a major contender to win it all.
After all, she is a seven-time champion here with a love for playing on the grass. And the reason she has returned to the game is to firmly establish her reputation as the greatest of all time. Two more Grand Slam titles would give her 25, the most of any player, man or woman.
Nevertheless, this wacky tournament could present more surprises.
There are a few others who could use their experience to win a first Wimbledon title. Angelique Kerber, the 11th seed, is a two-time Grand Slam champion and was a finalist here in 2016; Jelena Ostapenko, the 12th seed, was the 2017 French Open champion; Pliskova was a 2016 U.S. Open finalist; and Cibulkova was a 2014 Australian Open finalist.
Halep, for one, wasn’t ready to anoint any player as the odds-on favorite to lift the trophy next Saturday.
“In my opinion, anyone can win it now in this moment,” Halep said. “I feel that she (Williams) has a chance to win it, definitely. But also I see many other players that they have the chance to win it. “Depends on the day. Depends on the power, the feelings.”