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In a match
littered with unforced errors, 15th seed Patty Schnyder
stumbled inelegantly out of The Championships by losing to
her Swiss compatriot Emmanuelle Gagliardi 2-6, 7-6 (7-4),
6-2.
Swiss number one Schnyder, who overwhelmed Akiko Morigami
in the first round, certainly looked the stronger when she
rifled through her strokes. But she failed to get her
teeth into the match and crush an opponent ranked some 100
places below her.
A stuttering match evolved with occasionally flashes of
quality, such as when Schnyder broke Gagliardi with a
fierce forehand drive volley in the first set. Gagliardi
managed to capitalise on the 15th seed's inconsistency by
breaking back immediately to love, but crumbled again
herself as Schnyder broke to regain her lead.
Both players looked agitated and fidgety, muttering to
themselves and tossing their rackets to the ground when
wild ground strokes flew astray. The atmosphere was
nervous and tired, with no one taking charge of the match.
Rallies ended with errors not winners.
The second set grumbled wearily along with serve, neither
player being able to channel their frustrations into
aggressive shots. A tiebreak dutifully arrived to put an
end to this lack of ambition, and Gagliardi came out on
top, snatching it 7-4 as she came into her ascendancy.
Suddenly all her shots started flying into court, forcing
Schnyder into more errors. The tide was turning, and when
Gagliardi broke Schnyder in the fourth game of the final
set the underdog was on course for an upset. Schnyder
could not bounce back and her opponent stormed on,
breaking again in the final game to win 6-2. |
Singles
1R
beat Akiko Morigami 6-4 6-1
2R lost Emmanuelle Gagliardi
6-2 6-7 2-6
Doubles with Schett
1R
beat Jugic-Salkic/Jurak 6-2 4-6 6-2
2R beat Dominikovic/Rodionova
6-1 6-4
3R lost
Black/Stubbs 6-7 4-6
Photos
Wimbledon 2004 gallery
Articles
Patty Earns Pat On The Back |
