Wimbledon: Manic Monday Part 2

Take a look at part 2 of our fourth round coverage. (Part 1 HERE)

Cibulkova def. Wozniacki

Fans of world no. 1 Caroline Wozniacki are going to be bitter today after the Dane failed to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals, forcing the question once more: is she really worthy of her ranking? In her defense, she didn't lose today's match—Cibulkova won it. At 5'3'' small, Cibulkova looked twice her size on court, striking with such monstrous velocity you might have thought she was trying to smack the cover off the ball rather than hit winners. The feisty Slovak tallied 44 winners on the match, making her blistering forehand look easy. Wozniacki did have chances, having won the first set 6-1 and entering a second set tiebreak, but Cibulkova was a bit too good. Looks like the "best in the world" will have to wait for another chance to win a slam.

Score: 1-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5

Pironkova def. Venus Williams

It was deja vu on centre court when Pironkova knocked out Venus Williams. The Bulgarian has Venus tagged here at Wimbledon, defeating her last year by the same exact scoreline on her way to a semifinal birth. To be honest, it was not Venus' best performance, but Pironkova was spot on with low-flying backhands and sharp-angled forehands that the 5-time Wimbledon champion just couldn't put back in the court.

Score: 6-2, 6-3

Bartoli def. Serena Williams

Today wasn't a good day to be a Williams sister. Bartoli took down the defending champion in straights, despite a late surge from Serena. After wining the first set quite routinely, Bartoli looked to be playing the best tennis of her life—quite reminiscent, in fact, to her win over Henin a few year sago. But like every tennis fan knows, you can't count Serena out. Down two match points at 6-5 in the second set, Serena played her best point of the match followed by a return winner to take Bartoli's service game to deuce. Flash forward a few minutes later and we were in a tiebreak. Surely Serena would win, having fended off such dramatic points, but in a stunningly display of mental toughness, Bartoli stayed calm and prevailed 8-6 in the breaker.

Score: 6-3, 7-6 (6)

Paszek def. Pervak

Out on court 14, two surprise fourth rounders duked it out for a spot in the quarterfinals—a true highlight  in these women's careers. I don't know much about them, nor did I see the match, but it was Paszek who survived a tight three-setter. The Austrian went the distance in her last match against Schiavone and has shown some serious athletic ability. Will she have gas in the tank for the future?

Score: 6-2, 2-6, 6-3

-Kedzie Teller, ITB Senior Editor