Jo-Wilfried Tsonga runs for it

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga misses it

Karlovic a big hit against Tsonga

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga battles the fierce Ivo Karlovic serve in the third round. Ivo Karlovic served his way to victory with a 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 7-6 (7-5) win over the eighth seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France on No.1 Court. It was a fine win for the 22nd seed at the age of 30 because he had been beaten in the first round for each of the past four years here and despite having a game suited for grass, may have given up hope of ever making a significant breakthrough at SW19. The whole of the Croatian’s Grand Slam experiences do not match what he did today with the exception of Wimbledon five years ago when he lost in the fourth round to Roger Federer. At 6ft 10in. Karlovic is the tallest player to have been ranked in the top 100 and his considerable height is part of the intrigue that surrounds his approach to matches. He is uniquely equipped to serve dangerously and has the fitness and perseverance to do so for as long as is required. But it is not simply that weapon that put Karlovic into the fourth round where he will face Fernando Verdasco of Spain who will also fancy his chances in a serving contest. The Croatian had to bring a whole package of abilities to the court to cope with the challenge of Tsonga, six years his junior and 13 places higher in the seedings. Facing such a big server, Tsonga knew what was coming even though he had not played Karlovic previously. But the Frenchman is no slouch himself when it comes to serve and volley, which is why he was able to sustain his challenge for so long. Karlovic served 46 aces against 26 by Tsonga, which was one way of measuring the gap between them but there was a strong streak of defiance about Tsonga’s manner, which endeared him to the crowd, particularly in the last two sets when he was serving second and chasing rather than setting a target. Not much in this match was dependent on subtle play. There was no room for that in the grinding tennis for which both players were prepared. If there were some special shots they usually came from Tsonga, such as a backhand crosscourt winner in the second set, a shot through his legs when he faced the back of the court in the fourth. But otherwise it was all power. Karlovic won two of the three tie-breaks and in that sense finished the match in persuasive style. From 4-3 behind in the final tiebreak he won three quick points. The last, coming from a forehand error by Tsonga off a powerful return, took him to his first match point. He failed to convert the first but yet another ace settled it. Of course. Court 1 - Gentlemen's Singles - 3rd Round Ivo Karlovic CRO (22) 77 65 7 77 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga FRA (9) 65 77 5 65

Match analysis: Karlovic v Tsonga

Ivo Karlovic in the third round battle of the big hitters with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Two of the most ferocious servers on the ATP World Tour faced each other in the third round, meeting in a Grand Slam for the first time on a packed No.1 Court. This battle royale between the tallest man on the tour, Ivo Karlovic, and the player nicknamed “The Muhammed Ali of Tennis,” Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, intrigued the crowd watching two players with the best, and third best, first serves in the world. Just four weeks ago at Roland Garros, Karlovic smashed his way into the record books with the most aces in one match. He hit an incredible 55 aces, breaking his 2005 record set at Wimbledon of 51. Both players' first serves leave their rackets at speeds in excess of 135mph. The reaction times to return these serves is 0.6 seconds, which is why you have to accept that when the serves go in, they will not come back. On average, Karlovic will win the point 84% of the time and Tsonga 78%. So, for most of the match, the crowd watched the ball fly by the returner or clip the racket and spray anywhere but in the court. If the ball happened to be returned, Karlovic or Tsonga would be there to clean up the mess as the return would probably land in their court slow and short. In this situation, Karlovic likes to use his reach and pops up at the net to finish the point. Tsonga, on the other hand, prefers to use his forehand. What makes Karlovic unique is that his serve flies off his racket from a height no one else can match and he can hit the most ridiculous angles harder and faster than any player on the tour. This means the returner has to be very patient and work hard to avoid going the distance to a tiebreak. In the close-fought battle for first serve supremacy, Karlovic triumphed, winning 89% of the points The second serves are where both men are at their most vulnerable and have to use ”Plan B”. Karlovic uses his backhand slice to stay in the point and wait to approach the net with his forehand. Tsonga is more versatile, hence his higher ranking, and is capable of hitting winners from anywhere in the court. He tends to play a high risk game that sometimes can lead to the sort of errors that can cost him the match. But, more often than not, it leads to him controlling the points with his raw power, making him one of the top entertainers on the men’s circuit. In the battle for first serve supremacy, Karlovic triumphed, winning 89% of the points, while Tsonga was just behind the Croatian with 85%. The man from Le Mans was performing well on his second serve, but hesitation cost him in the tiebreak and the opening set belonged to Karlovic. The first break of the match almost came early in the second set, but it was not converted, so the match entered another “coin-flip” tiebreak, and Tsonga held on to level the match. In a match where it is nearly impossible to break serve, each player must get the first ones in, especially at the key moments. Sometimes Karlovic can stutter but today Tsonga collapsed under the pressure at the end of the third set, handing Karlovic the 12th game as he achieved the only break of serve in the match in the 38th game of the match. This put too much pressure on the ninth seed, who capitulated in the fourth set tiebreak, again missing his first serves when they were most needed, to lose the match 7-6, 6-7, 7-5, 7-6. The whole match was a flawless Karlovic master class, with 90% first serve points won and 46 aces. He was also triumphant 73% of the time on his second serve, so it was no surprise that Tsonga had no break points. During the rallies, the Croat ventured to the net in 71 of the 140 points he won throughout the match, and, of the 29 points he won off Tsonga’s serve, his reward was one break point out of two break point chances. It is hard to find anything wrong with the Frenchman’s performance, other then bad timing with a few of his 44 missed first serves.

tsonga stretched to the limit

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga The new No. 2 Court witnessed a thriller as ninth seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga battled through his first round match against Kazakhstan’s Andrey Golubev, a man ranked 62 places below him, in four sets, 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5). The tie-break in the third set saw some Tsonga magic as he raced around the ball to drive a winning forehand across the court. This was followed by another racing backhand to gain a mini-break. The fourth set also went to a tie-break. Tsonga clearly moved up a gear as he scented victory, hitting a Spitfire-fast “full toss” forehand return and following it up with a nifty net approach to volley a cross-court winner. This was one of the longest matches on court today at three hours, 21 minutes, and it was a relieved Tsonga who broke into a beaming grin, skipped across the court and thanked the crowd after he secured victory. An even longer match occurred on court 18 as Feliciano Lopez became the second seed to go out of the men’s tournament, following James Blake’s earlier exit to Andreas Seppi. The Spanish No.21 seed was beaten in a marathon five- setter 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 by Karol Beck of Slovakia in three hours, 45 minutes. Rainer Schuettler is no stranger to long matches at the All England Club either since he overcame Arnaud Clement in more than five hours last year. His victory today, in four sets, 6-7 (9-11), 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1, over Xavier Malisse was slightly more comfortable, taking just two hours 57 minutes. In the ladies’, Jie Zheng is safely through to the second round. Zheng, from Chengdu in China, stunned Ana Ivanovic in the third round last year before bowing out in the semi-finals. Another run could be on the cards after the 16th seed disposed of Germany’s Kristina Barrois in twin tie-breaks, 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-4). Zheng faces Daniela Hantuchova, conqueror of junior champion Laura Robson in the second round. Russian Alla Kudryavtseva stunned the tennis world when she knocked out her compatriot Maria Sharapova last year in the third round. But she was unable to repeat the feat against countrywoman Elena Dementieva this time. No.4 seed Dementieva barely had to break sweat as she won 6-4, 6-1. Russian Nadia Petrova, a quarter-finalist here last year, comfortably saw off the challenge of Anastasiya Yakimova 6-1, 6-1. India's Sania Mirza moved into the second round after beating Germany’s Anna-Lena Groenefeld 6-2, 2-6, 6-2. Victoria Azarenka has won three titles already this year, and she benefited from an injury to her opponent Severine Bremond Beltrame who retired hurt. Azarenka had already taken the first set 6-2 when the Frenchwoman Bremond Beltrame was forced to retire after spraining her knee in a fall. Another tight game followed on Court 3 saw the first female seed to depart. Francesca Schiavone of Italy came back from a set down to knock out Canadian No.23 seed Aleksandra Wozniak 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.