Muguruza stunned by qualifier Cepelova

Friday, 1 July 2016 00:28 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

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Reuters: Second seed Garbine Muguruza, bidding to add the Wimbledon crown to her French Open title, was sensationally beaten in the second round on Thursday by Slovakian qualifier Jana Cepelova 6-3 6-2 in the shock of the tournament so far.

Spaniard Muguruza, who lost to Serena Williams in last year’s final, had been one of the favourites for the title but looked lacklustre, getting only 42 percent of first serves in and struggling with the accuracy of her baseline powershots.

She had laboured in the first round against Italy’s Camila Giorgi, winning through in three sets, but had not lost against a player ranked outside the top 100 since last year.

However, Cepelova, ranked 124th, brought all the pedigree that helped her down then world number three Simona Halep in the first round last year to Court One, racing through the match in 59 minutes.

Muguruza’s defeat removed one of the biggest challengers to Serena Williams’s title defence and the American’s bid to equal Steffi Graf’s Open era record of 22 grand slams.