Top seed Ana Ivanovic struggles to adjust to grass game

Published on Saturday 28 June 2008 11:00

ONE by one, Wimbledon's catwalk queens are walking the plank.

Just 24 hours after former champion Maria Sharapova made a swift and early exit, top seed Ana Ivanovic was sent spinning out of the third round.

Whether she was feeling the effects from her recent French Open victory was unclear but the Serbian struggled with her serve in an uncharacteristically erratic performance.

China's Jie Zheng, who beat Britain's Elena Baltacha in the first round, duly took advantage with a 6-1, 6-4 victory that was as convincing as it was surprising.

Ivanovic had a reprieve after surviving two match points in her previous match and admitted the toll on her maiden Grand Slam win in Paris might have played a role.

"The last few weeks have been quite emotional and maybe that has taken its toll," she said.

"I didn't have the preparation that I would have hoped for and maybe I needed longer to adjust.

"Grass courts are so different from clay and you need time to prepare, which I didn't get.

"On clay if you are struggling, you still have time to get into the game but it's not like that here. You have to find your top level from the first point.

"When you are top seed everybody is so pumped when they play you. Your opponents have nothing to lose and some have played their best tennis against me."

Meanwhile, in the battle of two former champions, Serena Williams outmuscled Amelie Mauresmo 7-6, 7-1.

The sixth seed is suddenly looking a very good bet as the big names continue to tumble. The price on an all-Williams final, with reigning champion Venus stalking the other half of the draw, looks more tempting by the day.

Scotland's Elena Baltacha lost her third-consecutive first-round match as she failed to clear the first hurdle of the mixed doubles.

Along with partner James Auckland she paid the price for squandering four match points in a game held over from the previous day.

Czech duo David Skoch and Iveta Benesova finally emerged victorious, 6-7, 7-6, 7-9.

"That's a pretty bad way to finish the Championships," said Baltacha. "It's a game we should have safely wrapped up but we just couldn't kill it off. It's very hard to accept when you've had one foot in the next round."