CNN
—
Turns out this was not a good year to be a No. 3 seed in singles at Wimbledon.
On Tuesday at the All England Lawn and Tennis Club, American Jessica Pegula and German Alexander Zverev each were shockingly ousted in the opening round of the tournament.
First came the stunning win by world No. 116 Elisabetta Cocciaretto of Italy, who knocked out Pegula 6-2, 6-3 in 58 minutes.
Later in the day, in a resumption of a match that started Monday, France’s Arthur Rinderknech notched the upset against Zverev 7-6(3), 6-7(8), 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-4.
Cocciaretto, 24, who missed Wimbledon last year because of extended illness – coinciding with her drop in the world ranking – called the win “a dream come true.”
“I was so pumped to play Wimbledon this year,” Cocciaretto said in her on-court interview. “I couldn’t wait until the match started because I was practicing really hard to do the best that I can today.”
Pegula was coming off a quick turnaround heading into Wimbledon, having won the title at the Bad Homburg Open on Saturday.
But Pegula, last year’s US Open finalist, was quick to give her opponent credit, saying that Cocciaretto played “incredible tennis.”
“She just was hitting her shots and going for it, serving big, serving high percentage, going big second serves, redirecting the ball,” Pegula told reporters. “It was just her day I honestly think today, yeah.”
Cocciaretto will face American Katie Volynets in the second round.
As for Rinderknech, 29, his five-set win against Zverev is his first win against an opponent in the top 10 in a major. The match Monday had been stopped after the second set because of the Wimbledon-mandated 11 p.m. curfew.
“My legs are still shaking,” Rinderknech said in his on-court interview. “I can’t do it anymore. I’m just happy the match is finished.
“We started yesterday at, whatever, at 8. We finished today at 7. Slept about six hours last night. It’s very difficult, this sport, but I mean, what a moment. Such emotions.”
When asked if he felt like he was in control, Rinderknech joked, “Kind of.”
“You can’t really be in control when you play someone like Sascha Zverev, who’s No. 3 in the world, such a consistent player,” the Frenchman, currently ranked at No. 72, said. “He’s been there for 10 years. It’s my first top-five win in the biggest stadium in the world, so I don’t know.”
Rinderknech’s second-round opponent will be Chile’s Cristian Garin.
