Perfect seven for Seppi
Andreas Seppi extended his remarkable run of five set victories as the Italian 23rd seed defeated Japan’s Kei Nishikori 3-6, 6-2 6-7 (4/7), 6-1, 6-4 in the third round at Wimbledon on Saturday.
Seppi, who went the distance to beat Denis Istomin in the previous round, has now won all seven of the five-set matches in 2013 dating back to the Australian Open in January.
The 29-year-old will play former US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro or Slovenia’s Grega Zemlja for a place in the quarter-finals. Seppi showed impressive stamina as he recovered from two sets to one down to see off the Japanese 12th seed.
Nishikori needed treatment on his back after breaking early in the third set and couldn’t maintain his momentum despite winning the tie-break in that set. Seppi raced away with the fourth set and Nishikori called for a medical time-out to have more treatment on his back before the decider.
The Italian kept the pressure on and landed the killer break before serving out his latest lengthy win.
Meanwhile, South Africa’s Kevin Anderson would be forgiven for never wanting to set eyes on Tomas Berdych again after the Czech beat him for a ninth successive time at Wimbledon.
The seventh seed won 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 to set up a last-16 clash against feisty Australian Bernard Tomic.
Unheralded Pole Lukasz Kubot and fellow twilight zone journeyman, Kenny de Schepper of France, capitalised on the culling of seeds to secure surprise fourth round spots.
Kubot, the 31-year-old world number 30, defeated French 25th seed Benoit Paire 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 to reach the last-16 and celebrated his achievement with an impromptu can-can on Court 18.
De Schepper, the 26-year-old world number 80, beat Argentine 22nd seed Juan Monaco, 6-4, 7-6 (10/8), 6-4 to book a last-16 spot at a major for the first time in his career.
Kubot is the second Pole to reach the last-16 after 24th seed Jerzy Janowicz also booked his place on Friday. It is the first time that two Polish men have got this far at any Grand Slam in the Open era.
Russian 20th seed Mikhail Youzhny, a quarter-finalist in 2012, defeated Serbia’s Viktor Troicki 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 and goes on to face British second seed Andy Murray.
Women’s 2011 champion Petra Kvitova, the eighth seed, reached the fourth round with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 defeat of Russian 25th seed Ekaterina Makarova.
Laura Robson became the first British woman in 15 years to reach the fourth round. Robson came from a set and 3-5 down to defeat New Zealand’s Marina Erakovic, 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 and goes on to face either Alison Riske of the United States or Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, a former quarter-finalist.
Meanwhile, Wimbledon suffered a record-equalling 13th injury pullout on Saturday when Dutchman Igor Sijsling quit his third round match against Ivan Dodig of Croatia.
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