Elena Rybakina needed just 27 minutes on court Monday as Wimbledon’s week 2 began with a win for the titleholder as tearful Beatriz Haddad Maia had to quit injured.
Third seed Rybakina advanced into the quarter-finals 4-1 as her opponent retired with an apparent back injury which left her unable to move freely.
The Brazilian took a medical timeout off court while trailing 3-1 and lasted for one more listless game before quitting the match in pain.
“It’s never easy to finish a match like this, I hope it’s nothing serious,” the winner said.
“It was unlucky for her. I’m just happy to play another round. I was feeling the ball well today.
“But it was not easy to serve in the wind. I’m looking forward to my next match.”
Rybakina improved to 14-1 at the tournament which she won in a huge surprise a year ago.
The top seed moved into a re-run of last year’s final as she next plays Ons Jabeur.
The Tunisian sixth set up the grudge match with her 6-0, 6-3 hammering of defeat of double Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova in 63 minutes.
Kvitova had little chance in the rout, striking 26 unforced errors.
Jabeur said she is keen to face Rybakina again. “I’m probably going for my revenge.
“The match will bring back a lot of memories, I’m hoping to play like I did today and get the win.”
Aryana Sabalenka lined up a quarter-final with Madison Keys as the second seed crushed Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4, 6-0 in 71 minutes.
The victory was the 39th this season for the Australian Open winner, playing the event for a fifth time.
Sabalenka is chasing the top WTA ranking but will need to win the title on Saturday if she is to dethrone Iga Swiatek.
The winner now faces American Madison Keys in the quarters, with the pair having split their previous two meetings.
Keys ended the run of qualifier Mirra Andreeva 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-2, returning to the quarter-finals here for the first time since 2015.
The 16-year-old Andreeva, who ran away with the opening stages as she led a set and 4-1, was handed a point penalty late in the third set for allegedly throwing her racquet.
The penalty gave a match point to Keys.
The breakthrough qualifier argued in vain that she had slipped, with the racquet flying out of her hand.
But Keys took full advantage, returning to the last eight as she tapped in a winner at the net on match point after two hours.
“I don’t know how I turned this around,” the winner said “She’s a phenomenal player.
“It’s tough being on the other side of the net from a 16-year-old who is really playing with nothing to lose and you’re the one that’s supposed to beat her.
“That’s always a difficult position to be in.
“She’s a really great player on top of all of that. All in all, it was a tricky match.
“I had to stay in the match and get the chance to break back.
“Once I did that I tried to keep the momentum and here we are. I knew that my many years on the Tour would kick in,” the 28-year-old said. “It’s great to be back in the quarter-finals.”
The No. 102 Andreeva will enter the Top 100 as a result of her Wimbledon run and just missed out on a Top 50 place had she defeated Keys.
The youngster accepted the umpire decision though she did not shake hands later with the official.
“Honestly, I didn’t have any intention to throw the racquet – I slid.
“I thought that I would fall forward.
“Maybe it did look like I threw the racquet. But that was her decision to make, so she made this decision. Now that’s it, the match is over now.”
