Wimbledon 2011 Results: Sabine Lisicki Upsets French Open Champion Li Na
WC Sabine Lisicki def. No. 3 Li Na -- 3-6, 6-4, 8-6. For the second time in three years, Sabine Lisicki has defeated the reigning French Open champion at Wimbledon.
Having previously defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova in the third round of Wimbledon 2009, Lisicki today scored a far more impressive win in the second round of the 2011 tournament, saving two match points on her way to upsetting Li Na 8-6 in the third set. Li, the No. 3 seed in the Ladies' Singles draw, became the highest seed to crash out of Wimbledon 2011.
The battle of the two most recent champions of the grass court event in Birmingham was dictated by serve throughout, with Li clinching the first set 6-3 by a single break.
But Lisicki found range on her returns in the second set, racing out to a 5-2 lead and eventually taking the set 6-4 on her second break.
Li looked to regain control midway through the final frame, breaking Lisicki in the fifth game for a 3-2 lead that she was able to extend to 5-3.
Serving at 3-5, down double match point at 15-40, Lisicki put on the best serving display I’ve ever seen by a woman not named Serena Williams, smacking bomb after bomb to win four straight points when it counted most, maxing out with an ace at an incredible 124 MPH. Lisicki hit 17 aces in the match, and now leads the women’s field with a total of 25 through the first two rounds.
Li was clearly shaken by Lisicki’s nervy play, and shakily was broken for 5-5, leveling the match.
Serving at break point at 5-5, Lisicki took a ball out of the air that she should have let drop, hitting an ill-advised swinging forehand volley that sailed well wide, giving Li her second chance to serve for the win.
But Li’s forehand completely abandoned her (as had her husband, who departed the stadium several games earlier), and error after error allowed Lisicki to level the match once again at 6-6.
Lisicki’s service mojo returned in her next game, serving her way to a 7-6 edge and putting Li up against the wall for the first time. And on her third match point of the game, Lisicki finally came through, and collapsed to the ground with joy as Li’s final shot sailed wide and long.
For a player who exited the 2011 French Open on a stretcher due to cramping, and the 2009 US Open in a wheelchair due to an ankle injury, getting to exit the court with an enormous smile and a headline-making upset has to be an incredible feeling.
Lisicki, who needed a wild card to enter the main draw of the tournament, next faces unheralded Japanese player Misaki Doi. Liscki should win that one easily, one would assume, and could face Ana Ivanovic in the fourth round, and potentially Serena Williams in the quarterfinals.
Stay tuned to this StoryStream for more results from Day 4 of Wimbledon 2011. Get live scores at the tournament’s official website, and watch matches online for free on ESPN3.
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