from: Wimbledon
Lucky losers on red alert
The withdrawal of Kim Clijsters after she aggravated her ankle injury at 's-Hertogenbosch meant that 2010 semi-finalist Tsvetana Pironkova moved up into the top 32 and thus is one of the seeds.
In the men's draw, Sam Querrey and Benjamin Becker have been forced to withdraw, each of them suffering from elbow injuries. Their places in the main draw will be taken by lucky losers, i.e. the highest-ranked players from those defeated in the final round of qualifying. Lukasz Kubot and Flavio Cipolla, seeded No.2 and No.9 respectively, stand to benefit should they lose on Thursday, but they would obviously prefer the ranking points, prize money and of course confidence that goes with a third-round win in qualifying.
Pippa watches practice
The courts were a hive of activity on Wednesday, with dozens of players on site to practice ahead of The Championships. Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal had a hit at various times during the day, with Maria Sharapova also on Court 14 early in the morning.
Vera ends Serena's comeback
After playing - and winning - her first match in 49 weeks at Eastbourne on Tuesday against the above-mentioned Tsvetana Pironkova, Serena Williams was halted on her comeback trail against the woman she defeated in last year's Wimbledon final. Vera Zvonareva, who will be No.2 seed at The Championships after the withdrawal of Kim Clijsters, came from behind to win 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-5 in an epic match which lasted over three hours.
Though Serena will be disappointed to have lost, the fact that she was given such a thorough test of her capabilities can only stand her in good stead for next week, where she will be now seeded No.7.
