Pliskova, Serena Williams into Wimbledon fourth round as seeds keep falling
Karolina Pliskova's mother gets so jittery when her daughter is playing tennis that she never travels with her and also opts not to watch her matches on TV.
It's just as well Mrs Pliskova makes no exceptions to her blackout policy even during Wimbledon. Had she tuned in on Friday, her heart could have been doing flip flops for almost two hours as her cherished child underwent a serious test on Court One.
But in the end, Pliskova narrowly avoided joining the cull of Wimbledon seeds to reach the fourth round with a 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1 win over Romania's Mihaela Buzarnescu.
The Czech appeared to be in danger of becoming the ninth top-10 seed to fall before the last 16 when Buzarnescu bagged the first set and kept Pliskova guessing in the second as she stormed to a 4-1 lead.
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But somehow, she managed to cling on and not join Caroline Wozniacki, Garbine Muguruza, Petra Kvitova and Venus Williams in the ever-growing check-out queue.
So how did she pull off the great escape?
"I don't know," she said matter-of-factly.
Pushed to elaborate, she added: "Obviously a set and a half, she was so much better than me. But I just tried to hold my serve and wait for some chance because I was returning her serve so badly even though it was not that fast.
"I couldn't get used to it. Finally when I got used to it, I got my chances. She started to miss little bit. Then obviously she was broken a little bit after the second set."
Once the seventh seed survived the second set tiebreak, she raced through the decider to make it through to the second week for the first time in seven attempts.
She will next take on Venus Williams' conqueror Kiki Bertens — who won 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 8-6 on number one court — for a place in the quarter-finals.
Pliskova and world number one Simona Halep are the only top-10 seeds still in the tournament. Since tennis turned professional in 1968, it is the worst showing at Wimbledon by the women's seeds.
With such an open draw and with no other top-10 seed left in her half of the draw, she must now be fancying her chances of making it through to her second Grand Slam final following her run to the 2016 US Open title match.
"I don't care in the draw if they are seeded or not," she said.
"Even though they are not seeded, all the players are pretty strong and playing very good tennis. They wouldn't be here without playing a good level.
"Even today I could have lost. For me it's important I'm still in the draw. I know the draw is open and there is a big chance for me.
"All that matters is I want to win my next round."
She will be back to do just that in front of another big audience — but one that will not include a certain Mrs Pliskova.
"She doesn't even see the score, nothing."
In other results, Germany's Julia Georges [13th seed] beat Barbora Strycova [23] 7-6 (7-3), 3-6, 10-8 in a match that took four minutes shy of three hours.
American Madison Keys [10] joined the exodus, when she lost 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 to Evgeniya Rodina of Russia, Czech player Katerina Siniakova lost to Italy's Camilla Georgi 6-3, 6-7 (8-6), 6-2 and Croatia's Donna Vekic beat Belgium's Yanina Wickmayer 7-6 (7-2), 6-1.
Draw opens up for Serena
With the draw opening up in front of her, seven-times champion Serena Williams moved ominously into the last 16 at Wimbledon when she recovered from a sluggish start to beat France's Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 7-6 (7-1) on Friday.
She may be nearing 37 and ranked an almost laughable 181st in the world as she returns from maternity leave, but make no mistake, the American is back in the groove and has her eyes locked firmly on the title.
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In her first Grand Slam back, after missing the previous four, she reached the last 16 at the French Open but pulled out with a pectoral injury before her match against Maria Sharapova.
A few weeks on and with her game beginning to click smoothly into place, sport's most decorated mum suddenly looks like the one to beat in a women's tournament full of upsets.
Russian qualifier Evgeniya Rodina is her next hurdle and with no seeds left in her quarter of the draw 25th-seed Williams appears to have an open door to the semi-finals.
"The draw has opened up even more than she could have imagined," former men's champion John McEnroe said on the BBC.
"This is where she feels most at home and it is the easiest place for her to step it up and intimidate."
At almost the same time Serena was finishing off Mladenovic on Centre Court, sister Venus was losing over on Court One, meaning only two of the top-10 seeds remain.
Williams was measured on her chances when speaking to reporters, even if secretly she must be licking her lips.
"I'm feeling pretty good. I haven't had any problems yet. I think a lot of the top players are losing, but they're losing to girls that are playing outstanding," she said.
"If anything, it shows me every moment that I can't underestimate any of these ladies. They are just going out there swinging and playing for broke."
Few players in the history of women's tennis have gone for broke quite like Williams.
Reuters
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