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Wimbledon has played host to some of the finest players to have ever graced the sport. The likes of Rod Laver, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer on the men's side, and Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Monica Seles and the Williams sisters on the women's side, have scripted history at Wimbledon, but have also had their fair share of disappointments.
Such wathe dominance of these players at Wimbledon that an early exit, especially against an unseeded opponent, sent shockwaves through the tennis world.
On that note, let's take a look at the 10 greatest upsets at the grasscourt major in the Open Era.
#10 2004 Wimbledon Second Round: Karolina Sprem beat Venus Williams 7-6, 7-6
The 2004 second-round contest between 93rd-ranked Karolina Sprem and two-time champion Venus Williams appeared to be a mismatch on paper.
Williams had reached the final on her last four visits to SW19, winning in 2000-01, while the Croatian was on a four-match losing streak in Majors coming into the tournament.
Undaunted by the occasion and the pedigree of her illustrious opponent, Sprem matched Williams stroke-for-stroke from the baseline as she took the first set in a tiebreak.
The match appeared to be in the bag for the Croatian when she arrived at 5-3 30-0 on serve in the second set only to drop 10 consecutive points.
In the ensuing tiebreak, Sprem was awarded a point she did not earn due to an officiating error, but Williams still arrived at three set points. However, she lost five consecutive points from there on as the Croatian completed a stunning upset.
"It's impossible to be a winner or finalist every year. She played some good tennis," a dejected Williams said after the match.
Sprem would go on to reach the quarterfinals, where she was beaten by Lindsay Davenport.
#9 1983 Wimbledon Third Round: Kathy Jordan beat Chris Evert 6-1, 7-6
Unheralded Kathy Jordan sprung an upset of gigantic proportions when she downed three-time champion Chris Evert in the third round at 1983 Wimbledon.
Evert had won the Roland Garros and US Open titles in the preceding 12 months and had not lost before the semifinals at a Major in 34 previous appearances.
But Evert, afflicted by a stomach bug that she suffered the previous day, was not in her element and Jordan duly capitalized. After winning just one game in the opener, Evert looked well on her way to restoring parity when she raced to a 4-0 lead in the second.
However, Jordan recovered and closed out the match in straight sets, bagging the second set in a tiebreak to blow the draw wide open. Refusing to blame her physical condition for her defeat, Evert said:
"I don't make excuses. I wouldn't have walked on court if I hadn't felt fit...if I hadn't thought I could perform."
Jordan won one more match before losing to Billie Jean King in the quarterfinals.
#8 2013 Wimbledon Fourth Round: Sabine Lisicki beat Serena Williams 6-2, 1-6, 6-4
Coming off her second title at Roland Garros, defending champion Serena Williams arrived in London hoping to win her sixth Wimbledon title.
Williams meant business and arrived in the second week having dropped only 11 games. But she knew she was up against an inspired opponent when Sabine Lisicki took the opening set of their fourth-round encounter 6-2.
The World No. 1 responded by winning nine games in a row, restoring parity and going up a break in the third. But Lisicki refused to go away, twice recovering from a break down in the decider to seal one of the biggest wins of her career.
With Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal (more on one of them later) enduring early exits at the tournament, 2013 Wimbledon saw another high-profile player bite the dust when Lisicki downed Williams.
After the match, Williams praised her opponent while bemoaning her inability to win the big points.
"I didn't play the big points good enough," she said. "I didn't do what I do best. Sabine played really well, she always does well at Wimbledon, so I knew it would be a tough match going in. ... Definitely had opportunities, but I didn't take them."
Buoyed by her win over Williams, Lisicki made an inspired run to the final but ran out of steam against Marion Bartoli.
#7 1994 Wimbledon First Round: Lori McNeil beat Steffi Graf 7-5, 7-6
Three-time defending champion Steffi Graf was the odds-on favorite when she began her title defense at 1994 Wimbledon against the unheralded Lori McNeill.
The American had beaten Graf in the first round at the 1992 WTA Tour Championships, marking the German's first opening-round exit at any tournament in seven years. Three years later, lightning was not expected to strike twice.
But McNeil surprised Graf with her serve-and-volley game, breaking late in the first set and taking the second in a tiebreak. That marked the first instance of a defending women's champion falling in the first round.
A composed Graf, gracious in defeat, acknowledged she was not the better player on the day.
“It's not that big of an upset because of who I lost to,” Graf said.
It was Graf's only defeat at Wimbledon between 1991 and 1997. McNeil reached the Wimbledon semifinals that year, losing 8-10 in the third set to eventual champion Conchita Martinez.
#6 1987 Wimbledon Second Round: Peter Doohan beat Boris Becker 7-6, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
It's not often a teenager successfully defends a Grand Slam singles title. But that's exactly what Boris Becker did at Wimbledon in 1986 before heading to SW19 the following year as the favorite to complete a three peat.
But Becker, World No. 2 at the time, met his match with Australian Peter Doohan, who will be forever remembered for beating his much-heralded German opponent. Only a week prior, Becker had warmed up for a second title defense at Wimbledon by beating Doohan in the first round at Queen's en route to the title.
Doohan, who was 0-4 at Grand Slam tournaments, won his 1987 Wimbledon opener 9-7 in the fifth to set up a meeting with Becker.
The Australian got his tactics spot on this time around and broke Becker thrice en route to the biggest win of his career.
“Sure enough in the match both of these strategies worked like a charm and I was able to break him three times in the match, plus the fact that I was serving well and only got broken once myself ,and I had my famous victory,” said Doohan.
Becker’s stoic response to the loss: “It was not a war. Nobody died.”
Doohan crashed out in the fourth round, losing in straight sets to Slobodan Zivojinovic.
#5 2013 Wimbledon Second Round: Sergiy Stakhovsky beat Roger Federer 6-7 7-6 7-5 7-6
A day after Rafael Nadal was sent packing in the first round of the 2013 Wimbledon by Steve Darcis, Sergiy Stakhovsky served and volleyed his way to a monumental victory over defending champion Roger Federer in the second round.
Federer, who had reached the quarterfinals in his last 36 Major appearances, meant business as he pocketed the first in a tiebreak. Just as the seven-time champion looked like he was taking control of the match, Stakhovsky raised his level to draw level.
The Ukrainian rode his momentum and broke Federer's serve in the 11th game of the third, before serving out the set to go two-one-up.
The fourth set went to a tiebreaker, where Stakhovsky was the better player, capitalizing on an early lead to close out the biggest win of his career. In awe of his achievement, the then world no. 116 said:
"I can tell my grandkids that I kicked the butt of Roger Federer."
Stakhovsky failed to build on the win, falling to Jurgen Melzer in the third round.
#4 2012 Wimbledon Second Round: Lukas Rosol beat Rafael Nadal 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4
Seven years after falling in the second round at Wimbledon, Rafael Nadal suffered another exit at that stage in 2012, when he was sent packing by inspired Czech Lukas Rosol.
It marked one of the biggest upsets in Wimbledon history, as the second-ranked Nadal had reached the final of the competition in his five previous appearances.
Making his Wimbledon main-draw debut after five unsuccessful attempts, the 100th-ranked Rosol was undaunted by the prospect of facing two-time champion Nadal. The Czech produced a relentless barrage of groundstrokes and big serves to pound his illustrious opponent into submission.
After Nadal edged a tight opener in a tiebreak, Rosol took the next two sets, seizing control of the match. But Nadal fought back, breaking Rosol twice to force a decider before bad light forced the roof to be closed.
The Czech soon rediscovered his mojo, breaking Nadal early in the fifth and nervelessly producing three aces in his final service game to close out the biggest win of his career.
"I don't know what to say. I'm not just surprised but it's like a miracle. I never expected something like this," Rosol said after his win. "There are so many emotions - I don't know what to say. (Nadal) is a superstar, and I'm very sorry for him.
"I played unbelievably today. I hope I can play another match like this. I'm very happy for my support. Before the match, I was thinking to play three good sets so I don't lose 3-0. I know Nadal is only human. Nadal played a good match but I think I was a little bit better."
Rosol fell in the next round to Philipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets.
#3 1999 Wimbledon First Round: Jelena Dokic beat Martina Hingis 6-2, 6-0
Jelena Dokic produced one of the greatest upsets in Wimbledon history when she ousted five-time Major champion Martina Hingis in the first round at 1999 Wimbledon.
More than the result, which was only the third instance of a top seed suffering a first-round exit at Wimbledon, it was the manner of Hingis' loss that sent shockwaves through the tennis world.
The World No. 1 was blown away by the unheralded 16-year-old in under an hour, as Dokic kept Hingis on the back foot with a series of punishing groundstrokes.
"I guess I still can't believe I've beaten her," an elated Jokic said after the win. "It's a big win for me, especially in the first round, coming from qualifying, but I thought I played quite well today, and I'm quite happy that I won."
Jokic went on to reach the quarterfinals, where her run came to an end against fellow qualifier Alexandra Stevenson.
#2 2003 Wimbledon First Round: Ivo Karlovic beats Lleyton Hewitt 1-6, 7-6, 6-3, 6-4
Defending champion Lleyton Hewitt could never have prepared for what awaited him when he strode out to Centre Court to open his title defense against little-known Croat Ivo Karlovic in 2003.
Karlovic looked daunted by the occasion as he dropped the opener 6-1 but grew in confidence as the match wore on. Hewitt arrived within a point of a two-set lead at 5-4 on the Karlovic's serve, only to squander the opportunity.
After surviving that game, Karlovic restored parity by taking the second set in a tiebreak, and did not look back. Raining down aces and blistering service winners, the 6'11" world no. 203 sent Hewitt packing in four sets, marking the first instance in the Open Era of a defending men's singles champion losing in the first round at Wimbledon.
BBC commentator David Mercer summed things up quite succinctly when he said:
“Two hours and 20 minutes ago, it was Ivo Who? If he holds serve here, he’ll leave as Karlovic the Conqueror.”
Karlovic went on to lose to Max Mirnyi, but a new order in men's tennis emerged as Roger Federer lifted his first Grand Slam title and first of eight Wimbledon crowns at the end of the fortnight.
#1 2002 Wimbledon Second Round: George Bastl beat Pete Sampras 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4
Swiss journeyman George Bastl caused the greatest upset in Wimbledon history when he beat seven-time champion Pete Sampras in the second round in 2002.
A year after Roger Federer dismantled Sampras' aura of invincibility in a fourth-round classic, Sampras returned to Wimbledon in pursuit of a 14th Major.
But in a five-set clash at the old Court 2, which was nicknamed the "Graveyard of Champions, the American suffered one of his worst defeats.
Bastl, the 145th-ranked lucky loser, raced to a two-set lead, but Sampras fought back to take the next two sets and force a decider.
The Swiss, however, maintained his composure in the decider, yelling in delight when a Sampras forehand sailed long on match point. It was the last time Sampras would set foot in Wimbledon.
"I wasn't at my best. But I felt like I was going to win the match, even though I was down two sets to love," a downbeat Sampras said. "It's disappointing. I fought hard to get back into the match. It will be a tough flight home, knowing this is going on and I'm not here.
"I'm not going to end my time here with that loss. I want to end it on a high note and so I plan on being back. As long as I feel like I can continue to win majors and contend, I'll continue to play.’'
Although Sampras didn't return to Wimbledon, he ended his career on a high by defeating Andre Agassi in the US Open final.
Bastl lost to David Nalbandian in the next round, but he had already etched his name into tennis history, beating one of the finest grasscourt players of all time at his favorite hunting ground.
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