Unseeded Bulgarian Topples Venus

Five-time champion Venus Williams has been knocked out of Wimbledon in straight sets by unseeded Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova. Pironkova, playing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, crushed Williams 6-2, 6-3. Williams was broken twice in the first set and on consecutive occasions in the fourth and six games of the second.

The second-ranked Williams made 29 unforced errors and served five double faults against an opponent ranked 80 places below her. It is the second time in three matches the 22-year-old has defeated Williams, having also beaten her in the first round of the 2006 Australian Open. Pironkova, playing in her 19th Grand Slam, had never progressed past the second round of a major until this tournament. (More Venus Williams stories.)