Pe'er dumped out in third round of Wimbledon

The 16th seeded Israeli never managed to find her rhythm against her good friend and was uncharacteristically outplayed.

By ALLON SINAI
Shahar Peer 224.88 ap (photo credit: AP [file])
Shahar Peer 224.88 ap
(photo credit: AP [file])
Shahar Pe'er crashed out of Wimbledon on Friday afternoon, losing 6-3, 6-2 to Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli in the third round of the tournament. The 16th seeded Israeli never managed to find her rhythm against her good friend and was uncharacteristically outplayed by an inferiorly ranked player. Pe'er, who had defeated Bartoli (19) in all five of their previous meetings, hit 29 unforced errors, 17 more than the Frenchwoman. "I didn't play well and couldn't string together a good run of points," Pe'er said after the match. "I felt good before the match and my warm-up went well, but I didn't take my chances and made too many unforced errors." Pe'er began the match well, holding serve comfortably in the first game. However, a 30 minute rain break at 40-40 in the second game upset the Israeli's play and shifted the momentum in Bartoli's favor. The Frenchwoman held serve when play resumed, saving two break points in the game, and broke Pe'er in the following game to open a 2-1 lead. Bartoli remained in front throughout the remainder of the set and a second break of serve in the ninth game gave her a one set lead. The Frenchwoman held serve in the first game of the second set, saving four break points, much to the frustration of the Israeli. After both players held serve in the following two games, Bartoli recorded her third break of the match with an accurate backhand winner. After squandering eight break points, Pe'er broke to love in the subsequent game and closed to within one game (3-2). However, the Israeli couldn't tie the score, losing her serve in the sixth game after sending the ball wide once more. The Frenchwoman's fourth break of serve broke the Israeli's spirit and Bartoli quickly wrapped up the win with two more games. "I'm very disappointed with the defeat, but in sport and especially tennis you have good days and bad days. Unfortunately, Friday was a bad day," Pe'er said. "All in all I had a good singles tournament and felt much better on the grass. I'm taking part in the doubles tournament, so I've still go something to play for." Pe'er and Indian partner Sania Mirza, who are seeded 16th in the event, defeated Sofia Arvidsson and Lilia Osterloh 7-5, 6-3 in the first round of the women's doubles tournament on Friday. The Israeli/Indian duo was due to face Agnes Szava and Vladimira Uhlirova in the second round on Saturday, but the English rain prevented the match from ever begining. Ram and Erlich suffer surprise defeat Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich failed to advance to the latter stages of a Grand Slam event for a seventh straight time on Friday, losing 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 to Jamie Murray and Eric Butorac in the second round of Wimbledon. The Israelis, who have only advanced past the third round of a major once in their last 16 attempts, struggled on their opponents serve and only reached two break points throughout the match. Ram and Erlich, who were seeded seventh in the event, got off to a good start and seemed to be in control at the beginning of the match. The duo broke in the third game of the match and held serve comfortably to clinch the first set. Murray and Butorac perfectly timed their first break of the match, breaking in the 10th game of second set to tie the score at one set all. A single break of serve in the third and fourth sets was all Murray and Butorac needed to complete the victory and book their place in the third round. Harel Levy and Rajeev Ram's second round doubles match against 15th seeded Argentinians Martin Garcia and Sebastian Prieto was suspended due to rain on Saturday. The Israeli/American duo won the first set 7-6 (0), with the second set tied at 3-3 when the downpour began.