She wasn't walloped in straights, like in last year's Wimbledon and U.S. Open finals, or this year's Australian Open semis. But Vera Zvonareva once again suffered an ugly defeat at a major, losing 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-2 to 14th-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the fourth round.
That pattern has gradually emerged during Zvonareva's time near the top of the rankings. In her latest loss, there was hardly a pattern to discern. Pavlyuchenkova opened the match with a break, and held for 2-0, then lost the next five games. But a mix of Zvonareva misses and Pavlyuchenkova pressure leveled the set at 5-all. It would go to a tiebreaker, which Pavlyuchenkova would win, but not before Zvonareva had a set point when leading 6-5.
Whether Zvonareva was emboldened by the squandered opportunity or Pavlyuchenkova relaxed, the third seed stormed to a 4-0 lead in the next set. Zvonareva would wrap it up shortly after. But I must mention a strange sight: For the second time in the match, we saw Zvonareva kneeling on the clay as if writhing in pain after losing a point. Yet there was no other evidence of physical discomfort throughout the match. For all the shots she possesses, Zvonareva is still held back by her mental game, which I couldn't help but think of here.
Pavlyuchenkova may not have the consistent shotmaking of Zvonareva, but she has superior offense. That's what ultimately decided the final set, which Zvonareva once led by a break. But a lead didn't matter much today, as Pavlyuchenkova roared back from 2-1 down to 5-2 up. If Pavlyuchenkova had to serve this one out, it's likely we'd have taken another twist on this rollercoaster. But the ride ended with a break of serve, as did Zvonareva's tournament.
—Ed McGrogan