Dulko's dreams ended by Petrova

Gisela Dulko Maria Sharapova’s conqueror Gisela Dulko looked to be well on the way towards ousting another big name Russian seed before running out of steam against Nadia Petrova and falling in three sets. Argentine Dulko, ranked 45th in the world, became a crowd favourite on Wednesday after her unexpected and stylish win over 2004 champion Sharapova. And another upset looked on the cards after she took the first set against Petrova in little over half an hour. But her play quickly went downhill and, despite much fighting spirit, she could not keep her dreams of further progress alive and ended up on the wrong end of a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 scoreline. But it had all looked so good early on for the buccaneering blonde from Buenos Aires. Petrova seemed visibly frustrated at conceding the first set so empathically, giving herself a good talking-to in Russian in a bid to psyche herself up for the rest of the match. Dulko briefly continued her exceptional play in the second, including an advantage battle in the second game, which see-sawed its way through six deuces. Dulko was determined not to concede an early break and that iron will proved to be enough to keep the Russian at bay. But after winning that epic battle, Dulko seemed to lose her bearings – and the ball’s journey from her racket to the net became a regular one. Suddenly the player that had looked like such an accomplished conqueror of big-name seeds looked a very different player. The match statistics underline this turnaround in fortunes. In sets two and three, the Argentine only managed to win 20% of her points on return, compared to it being a 50-50 prospect in the opening set. That meant that Petrova’s ability to regularly pull aces out of the bag - she’s top of the aces leaderboard at The Championships – were now really beginning to hurt her opponent, as opposed to earning her the odd consolation point. After levelling the match, the experienced Russian broke her opponent in the first game of the second set and then powered down five aces in her first two service games to build a quick 3-1 lead. Although her display from there on was far from convincing, she had already done enough to take the wind out of the sails of the Argentine. Consistency was the key in this match and it seemed that Dulko just didn't have what it took to keep it up for a full three sets. Petrova spotted her moment early in the second set, committed to a riskier game plan and used it to her advantage to pull off the win in under two hours. Petrova will next cross rackets with Belarussian Victoria Azarenka, world no.10 and the 8th seed here. Court 3 - Ladies' Singles - 3rd Round Gisela Dulko ARG 6 3 4 Nadia Petrova RUS (10) 3 6 6

Sharapova shocked in second round defeat

Maria Sharapova fights back against Gisela Dulko during their match on Centre Court. Gisela Dulko outlasted Maria Sharapova in a three-set thriller on Centre Court on Wednesday. The Russian battled back from a set down and saved four match points in the final game with a stunning array of audacious shots, but Dulko remained calm to best her storied opponent and set up a third-round clash with No. 10 seed Nadia Petrova. Despite Sharapova being a former Wimbledon champion (the second youngest in the Open era, taking the 2004 title at the age of 17), a two-time semi-finalist and the 24th seed, she began the match ranked 15 places below her opponent – a fact due in no small part to the Russian’s nine-month absence from the courts due to an injury to her right shoulder. She made her comeback in Warsaw and reached the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, winning four three-setters on the way and also made the last four at Edgbaston prior to arriving in London. Dulko, meanwhile, has been there or thereabouts since entering the top 50 in 2004, without ever threatening a genuine breakthrough. She defeated Jelena Jankovic at Miami this year, but has only eight wins over top 10 opponents after almost a decade on the circuit. The Argentine certainly made the better start of the two, holding serve twice either side of an early break to race into a 3-0 lead. Her service was crisp – a high toss before sending the ball straight down the middle from the deuce court or deep into the corner on the advantage side – and Sharapova was a step slow to every ball. Though she settled into a better rhythm, the Russian conceded another break in the eighth game to hand Dulko the opening set. The Buenos Aires native again pulled three games clear in the second set before losing her radar on service. Sharapova rightly decided to play percentage tennis: Dulko retreated behind the baseline and reduced her approaches to the net, allowing the Russian to vary her depth of shot and move her opponent about the court at will. From 3-0 down, Sharapova rattled off six games in a row to pave the way for a deciding set. Early breaks were the order of the day, but after both players had settled back into rhythm, Dulko stole Sharapova’s serve, this time to love, in the psychologically crucial seventh game. The 22-year-old Siberian soon found herself facing two match points when Hawk-Eye ruled against her after an ambitious Dulko forehand clipped the outside of the line. But she saved them both, pulling off an ice-cool drop-shot that had the crowd gasping. A stunning long-line backhand saved a third match point and a fourth also came and went before Hawk-Eye again intervened to give the Argentine a fifth bite at the cherry, and this time there was to be no reprieve. Sharapova sent a simple forehand long and Dulko was through, equalling her best Wimbledon performance to date. Three-time Grand Slam winner Sharapova will hopefully return fitter and stronger next year, but for a few fleeting moments in the face of adversity, she showed what the women’s game has been missing during her long enforced absence. Centre Court - Ladies' Singles - 2nd Round Maria Sharapova RUS (24) 2 6 4 Gisela Dulko ARG 6 3 6

Match analysis: Sharapova v Dulko

Dulko victorious Maria Sharapova’s second-round match today was just her 15th match since her comeback from a shoulder operation in October. Our first match analysis of The Championships takes an in-depth look at how the former world No.2 performed during her shock defeat to the in-form Argentine Gisela Dulko. Looking at the 2004 Wimbledon champion’s results since May, when she began her comeback, the three players that have defeated her prior to today have all been highly ranked and consistent performers. She lost to Alona Bondarenko, ranked 33, on clay in Warsaw and to Dominika Cibulkova, ranked 13, at Roland Garros. Two weeks ago, it was China’s Na Li, ranked 18 in the world, who halted her progress, at the semi-final stage of Birmingham’s grass court event. Today it was the turn of the Argentine ranked 45th in the world. It is never easy returning to the tour after nine months out of the game, but Sharapova is an exceptional talent, and her game is perfectly designed for grass. She is also a battler, something she proved today ¬ only going down after a strong fight. In the opening set, Sharapova was under constant pressure and unable to establish a rhythm, particularly on her second serve, as Dulko camped out behind the baseline and used the Russian’s power to counter-attack whenever the opportunity presented itself. The key to the first set, and eventually the match, was Dulko’s ability to capitalise on Sharapova’s weak second serve Over the course of the match Dulko made slightly fewer unforced errors (23 to 27) than her opponent. In the end these made the difference, accounting for four of the five points that Dulko needed to swing the match in her favour as the Argentine eventually triumphed by 93 points to Sharapova’s 88. In each of the three sets, Dulko hit 75% of shots from behind the baseline as she waited for the opportunity to step up the court to pressurise the Russian, who is not the quickest mover in between shots. Sharapova was far more adventurous, getting inside the baseline 52% of the time in the first set and 65% of the time in the second and third sets. The key to the first set, and eventually the match, was Dulko’s ability to capitalise on Sharapova’s weak second serve, which was rolled in with spin at about 90mph. Her aggressive returns kept the former champion off balance, and for two out of the three sets helped her capture five break points to Sharapova’s four. Dulko’s quick court coverage along with the accuracy of her groundstrokes prevented the attack-minded Russian from getting into the court at the earliest opportunity to finish off the point. However, in the second set, after going a break down, Sharapova’s rhythm slowly returned and she managed to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 5-3 advantage. The Russian achieved the turnaround by improving her return rate, winning almost twice as many points on Dulko’s second serve than in the first set, and at the same time slightly improving her own win percentage on her second serve. Unfortunately for Sharapova the renaissance did not last and in the third set Dulko raised her game and started to mix things up. The Argentine’s drop shot appeared more and more and she made six rushes to the net, all of them successful. Sharapova did produce glimpses of her A-game but in the end it was not enough although at 5-3 nerves looked to be getting the better of Dulko as Maria rifled in some big forehands and backhands. But the Argentine eventually kept her cool and after six match points clinched up a fine victory, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.

One to watch: Gisela Dulko

Gisela Dulko Gisela Dulko’s biggest claim to fame so far is that she once dated Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, the seventh seed here. On the tennis court the Argentine world No.45 has enjoyed a less glamorous life. Although solid and consistent, the girl from Buenos Aires has hardly forced anyone to send any postcards home about her. But that could all change as she faces arguably the biggest match of her career on Centre Court today. Dulko kicks off the action on SW19’s biggest court against 2004 winner Maria Sharapova at 1pm. In her two meetings with Sharapova, Dulko has won just three games. But those matches were back in 2005 and 2006 and the 24-year-old will be hoping to banish those memories against the 24th seed today. She had enjoyed a decent 2009 so far with fine wins over Jie Zheng (in Hobart), Bethanie Mattek-Sands (in Indian Wells), Jelena Jankovic (in Miami) and Victoria Azarenka (in Stuttgart). Those results will give her hope of beating her previous best at Wimbledon. She has reached the third round three times, in 2004, 2006 and last year. Dulko will also be looking to improve on a Grand Slam best of the fourth round (which she achieved at the French Open in 2006). She has barely dropped out of the top 50 since turning professional, with a career high of 26 in 2005. Dulko has reached one final this year – in Bogota in February – when she was beaten by Maria-Jose Martinez Sanchez. In the Australian Open she put up a good fight against Serena Williams before losing 6-3, 7-5 in the second round. Now Dulko, who took up tennis aged seven after watching brother and now coach Alejandro, has the chance to kick-start her career with a high-profile win. She certainly has happy memories of her time as a junior at Wimbledon. In 2001 she won the junior doubles competition with American Ashley Harkleroad, one of three junior Grand Slam titles she won. She would dearly love to claim the scalp of Sharapova and take that next step up the ladder. And her family and friends back home in Argentina would be only too happy to receive a postcard from London if that were to happen.