Defending champion Li Na of China crashed out of the French Open on Monday while Maria Sharapova overcame a catalogue of errors on a bitterly cold day in Paris to struggle into the quarterfinals for the sixth time.
Li, who was Asia’s first Grand Slam singles champion when she took the 2011 title, lost her crown at the fourth round stage, going down 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 to Kazakh qualifier Yaroslava Shvedova, the world 142.
Men’s defending champion Rafael Nadal of Spain encountered no such problems, bulldozing into the quarterfinals with an awe-inspiring 6-2, 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Argentine 13th seed Juan Monaco.
Second seed Nadal, who has dropped only 19 games in four matches, next faces compatriot Nicolas Almagro, the 12th seed, for a place in the semifinals.
World number seven Li was attempting to be the first French Open women’s champion to successfully defend the title since Justine Henin in 2007. But after a confident start on Suzanne Lenglen court, the 30-year-old endured a spectacular meltdown in the second set and never recovered, notching 41 errors and ending up being broken seven times by her 24-year-old opponent.
“I lost one match so don’t try to put me down,” Li, who hasn’t won a title since her Paris victory, snapped at a tense post-match news conference. “This is tennis. I will try to find the reason why I lost.”
Shvedova, who was also a quarterfinalist in 2010, had to come through qualifying after an injury-hit 2011 saw her ranking plummet at one stage to 206. She will now face fourth-seeded Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova who knocked out American Varvara Lepchenko 6-2, 6-1.
Sharapova struggled into the quarterfinals, defeating Czech veteran Klara Zakopalova 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-2 in an error-scarred clash which featured 21 breaks of serve.
The Russian second seed, seeking a Roland Garros title to complete a career Grand Slam, goes on to face Estonian 23rd seed Kaia Kanepi who put out Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands 6-1, 4-6, 6-0. But Sharapova will be hoping for an improvement in conditions in Wednesday’s quarterfinal after a stiff wind and bitter cold, which saw temperatures dip to a chilly 14 degrees, played havoc with her game, temper and movement. The statistics of Monday’s match on Philippe Chatrier court told a grim tale.
Sharapova finished with 53 unforced errors to her opponent’s 48 and served up 12 double faults against seven. With serve constantly under siege, Sharapova carved out a massive 31 break points in total, converting 12.
Sharapova, the favourite for the title following the exits of top seed Victoria Azarenka, Li and Serena Williams, rarely settled in the three hour 11 minute encounter.
Twice she argued with umpire Julie Kjendlie while also taking an embarrassing, bottom-first tumble on to the damp red clay midway during the ninth game of the second set.
In a neat snapshot of the match, Sharapova double-faulted on match point in the seventh game of the final set; Zakopalova suffered a similar lapse in the next game to hand her opponent victory.
In the men’s singles, Juan Martin del Potro edged past Tomas Berdych in a battle of big-hitting baseliners to book his spot in the last-eight, winning 7-6, 1-6, 6-3, 7-5. He will play Roger Federer in the quarters. Fourth seed Andy Murray also advanced, after packing off Richard Gasquet of France 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2.
Sania-Bhupathi win
Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi inched towards their second Grand Slam title together as they progressed to the mixed doubles semifinals after shocking second seeds Kveta Peschke and Mike Bryan 6-2, 6-3 in just under an hour.
Fourth round results (prefix denotes seeding): Men’s singles: 4-Andy Murray (Britain) bt 17-Richard Gasquet (France) 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2; 2-Rafa Nadal (Spain) bt 13-Juan Monaco (Argentina) 6-2, 6-0, 6-0; 9-Juan Martin Del Potro (Arg) bt 7-Tomas Berdych (Cze) 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-3, 7-5; 5-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (Fra) bt 18-Stanislas Wawrinka (Sui) 6-4, 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 3-6, 6-4; 12-Nicolas Almagro (Esp) bt 8-Janko Tipsarevic (Srb) 6-4, 6-4, 6-4; 6-David Ferrer (Esp) bt 20-Marcel Granollers (Esp) 6-3, 6-2, 6-0.
Women’s singles: 2-Maria Sharapova (Rus) bt Klara Zakopalova (Cze) 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2; Yaroslava Shvedova (Kaz) bt 7-Li Na (Chn) 3-6, 6-2, 6-0; 4-Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Varvara Lepchenko (US) 6-2 6-1; 23-Kaia Kanepi (Estonia) bt Arantxa Rus (Netherlands) 6-1, 4-6, 6-0.