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Zheng Jie
-- PHOTOS: BLOOMBERG, AFP
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Wimbledon - Back on Court 1, Ana Ivanovic, the No 1 seed, found herself in the same predicament: down match point against a woman ranked far, far below her.
But this time there would be no improbable escape.
Zheng Jie smacked a first serve into Ivanovic's body and gave Chinese tennis a huge pre-Olympic lift as Ivanovic's forehand return sailed out of play.
'Me, too. I'm surprised,' said Zheng, ranked 133rd in the world.
It has been that sort of first week at the All England Club. Even the return of stereotypical grey, rainy weather on Friday did not change the trend.
Two of the four leading men's contenders, Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Andy Roddick of the United States, were upset in the second round.
Now, two of the four leading women's contenders have gone out early, with Maria Sharapova, the No 3 seed and former champion, losing in the second round, and now Ivanovic, the new No 1 player and French Open champion.
Ivanovic lost 1-6, 4-6 to Zheng in the third round.
For those who saw Ivanovic's previous match on Court 1, her defeat was not the shock it could have been.
Against the French veteran Nathalie Dechy, she struggled with her timing and Dechy's frequent changes of pace and tactics.
Only a net-cord winner from Ivanovic on a match point kept Dechy from celebrating an upset.
'I felt like I was struggling a little bit; it was a very, very emotional past couple weeks for me, and it also took a little bit of a toll on me,' said Ivanovic who, like Sharapova, chose not to play in a grass-court tune-up.
'I didn't have as good a preparation as I hope for, because I had to have some time off, as well.'
Ivanovic, a 20-year-old Serb, was quick to credit Zheng, who made it into the main singles draw only because the All England Club honoured her request and offered her a wild card.
Zheng is from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, which was struck by an earthquake on May 12 that left more than 60,000 people dead.
The 24-year-old Chinese said none of her family members was killed, adding: 'We were very lucky.'
She had donated her prize money, for reaching the third round of the French Open, to the relief effort.
She plans to donate some of her Wimbledon winnings as well.
'I don't think about it as much now because Chengdu is fine and is doing better,' she said. 'But I'm happy to get this victory, because I want to give good news to my city.'
Zheng earned the victory with excellent returns, fine defence and consistent aggressive play from the baseline.
'In China, there is no grass court,'she said. 'But every time I play on a grass court, I feel it's a perfect one.'
She is in the Round of 16 at a Grand Slam event for the second time. The first was at the 2004 French Open, where she became the first of this generation of Chinese players to break through.
She has been eclipsed by Li Na, but Zheng is the first Chinese player to beat a reigning world No 1.
New York Times, AP
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