Bad light stops Djokovic after epic fightback

Holder and top seed Novak Djokovic suffered an almighty scare against South African giant Kevin Anderson before bad light halted play with the score tied at two sets all in their fourth round match at Wimbledon on Monday.

The world number one lost the first two sets 7-6(8) 7-6(8) on tiebreaks before roaring back to win the next two 6-1 6-4 and remain on course for a 25th successive grand slam quarter-final.

No respecter of reputations, 14th seed Anderson out-ran and out-reached the shaken Serb over the first two hours to send shudders of anticipation around Court One as a shock upset loomed.

They were the first sets the twice champion had dropped in this year's tournament and Djokovic looked uncomfortable against his opponent's booming 130mph deliveries and barely slower second serves.

With his back to the wall and staring at the earliest exit by a top seed in 14 years, the Serb then found a sudden burst of energy to raise his game and take the third set in a rattling 24 minutes.

He carried the momentum over into the fourth, racing against the fading of the light, and broke Anderson in the third game before serving out 6-4 as the clock passed the three hours mark.

Boos and shouts from the crowd of "play some more" greeted the umpire's decision to suspend the match until Tuesday on the same court - when rain threatens - as the players packed their bags and walked off.

If anyone was smiling, it was Djokovic - calm restored and everything to play for.

Anderson had started aggressively, keeping Djokovic on the defensive through an opening set that went with serve to the tiebreak that the South African won with an ace after the champion had rescued one set point and then double-faulted.

The South African made the first break of the match in the second set, going 3-1 up before Djokovic broke back.

The Serb saved two set points against his serve to level at 6-6 and set up a tiebreak that could have gone either way before Anderson served an ace and then broke Djokovic's serve for the set.

"Anderson came out and meant business," commented former champion John McEnroe on the BBC.

"What changed (after the second set) was Anderson realised he could win this match and that mindset puts the stress on you and you start to think 'Can I actually win this?' Djokovic just kept on working."

Siblings

Serena had earlier ousted big sister Venus in the battle of the Williams siblings, while Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka had claimed comfortable victories.

Federer was given the swiftest of workouts against 20th-seeded Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, who became the latest player to exit in double quick time at the hands of the seven-time champion without making an impact on the Swiss's serve.

At one stage it looked like the Spaniard would struggle to finish the match as the trainer was called onto court to tend to an ankle injury, but he battled on in a 6-2 6-2 6-3 defeat.

The result extended a remarkable run of serving by Federer, who has not been broken in eight straight matches and 106 games, and set up a quarter-final with French 12th seed Gilles Simon, who surprised former finalist Tomas Berdych 6-3 6-3 6-2.

Murray's bid for a second Wimbledon title continued largely untroubled, with the third seed emerging unscathed from the crosshairs of Ivo Karlovic.

The giant Croat fired down 29 aces and regularly tipped the speed gun over 130mph but Murray made the most of his chances and, bar a brief wobble when he lost the third set, claimed a comfortable 7-6(7) 6-4 5-7 6-4 victory.

There was no upset in sight as the fourth seeds in the men's and women's draw went through in straight sets as Wawrinka edged Belgium's David Goffin 7-6(3) 7-6(7) 6-4 and Maria Sharapova beat plucky Kazakh Zarina Diyas 6-4 6-4.

The remaining days of the tournament are also likely to be quieter and less controversial after Australian hot-head Nick Kyrgios was beaten in four sets by Richard Gasquet.

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