LONDON: Barbora Krejcikova made a tearful Wimbledon exit as the defending champion crashed to a three-set defeat against Emma Navarro, while men’s top seed Jan­nik Sinner crushed Pedro Martinez to reach the last 16 on Saturday.

Krejcikova appeared to be struggling with injury as she wept in the closing stages of the third-round clash on Court One.

Navarro took advantage to cause the latest upset in the women’s tournament following the exits of five of the top six seeds.

Krejcikova had to fight back from a set down to beat rising star Alexandra Eala in the first round before another tense three-set win over Caroline Dolehide in the second round.

There would be no dramatic escape for Krejcikova this time, with the 17th seed’s fitness problems finally catching up with her against American 10th seed Navarro.

Krejcikova, a two-time Grand Slam champion, has endured a difficult time since defeating Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the Wimbledon final last year, having played just six matches this season prior to returning to the All England Club this week.

She was out of action until May after suffering a back injury and lost in the second round of the French Open.

Krejcikova also pulled out of the recent Eastbourne Open before the quarter-finals with a thigh problem.

“It was really tough out here today. Probably neither of us played our best tennis. I know she was dealing with some injuries at times,” Navarro said.

Earlier, Sinner took just one hour and 55 minutes to demolish 52nd-ranked Martinez 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 in a Centre Court masterclass, though the Spaniard was struggling with a shoulder issue.

The 23-year-old will face Bulgarian 19th seed Grigor Dimitrov, a straight-sets winner over Austria’s Sebastian Ofner, in the fourth round.

Sinner has lost just 17 games across his first three matches at this year’s tournament, in contrast to defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, who has shown patchy form en route to the last 16.

The Italian returned from a doping ban in May, losing the Italian Open final to Alcaraz and squandering three championship points against the Spaniard in the French Open final last month.

His best performance at Wimbledon was a run to the semi-finals in 2023 and he reached the quarter-finals last year.

“Every time you reach the second week of a Grand Slam it’s a very special occasion,” Sinner said.

Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina made a surprise exit, losing to Denmark’s Clara Tauson 7-6(8/6), 6-3.

Rybakina, the Kazakh 11th seed, won her maiden Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2022 and reached the semi-finals last year.

But the 26-year-old’s hopes of another strong run were ended by 23rd-seeded Tauson in the third round.

Iga Swiatek, a five-time Grand Slam champion, reached the fourth round with a 6-2, 6-3 rout of American Danielle Collins.

The Polish eighth seed, who reached her first final since last year’s French Open in Bad Homburg last weekend, is getting more comfortable on the lawns of south-west London.

“I was just in the zone. I knew how I wanted to play and I knew I needed to be brave,” she said.

Teenage Russian seventh seed Mirra Andreeva thrashed American world number 55 Hailey Baptiste 6-1, 6-3 in just 78 minutes.

SABALENKA FIGHTS OFF RADUCANU

On Friday, women’s top seed Aryna Sabalenka fought off inspired home favourite Emma Raducanu 7-6(8/6), 6-4 in a cauldron-like Centre Court atmosphere to keep her Wimbledon quest on track but it was the end of the road for two other Grand Slam champions.

Sabalenka edged a ferocious contest under the roof after requiring eight set points in the opening set and then roaring back from a 4-1 deficit in a sizzling second.

“Wow! What an atmosphere, my ears are still hurting, it was super loud,” a relieved Sabalenka said on court after wrapping up the win on her third match point.

However, Raducanu questioned the electronic line-calling technology and was unhappy on one call in particular, when a shot from Sabalenka was ruled to have clipped the line, was wrong.

“That call was for sure out,” said the former US Open champion after the intense battle on Centre Court. “It’s kind of disappointing, the tournament here, that the calls can be so wrong, but for the most part they’ve been OK.

“I’ve had a few in my other matches, too, that have been very wrong. Hopefully they can fix that.”

Earlier, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, chasing a third successive Wimb­ledon title, was also put through the wringer by Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff before sealing a last-16 spot with a 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win.

French Open winner Alcaraz extended his winning run to 21 matches by beating Struff but it was a Jekyll and Hyde performance as he again showed vulnerability.

“I was suffering in every service game... 0-30s and breakpoints down. It was stressful. Every time he could push me, he did. I was trying to survive,” Alcaraz said.

The 22-year-old will face Russian 14th seed Andrey Rublev next after he beat French qualifier Adrian Mannarino 7-5, 6-2, 6-3.

French showman Gael Monfils had to resume his match but the 38-year-old could not prevent a 6-4, 1-6, 4-6, 7-6(7/5), 6-4 defeat by Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics.

Published in Dawn, July 6th, 2025