Tennis: It's the pits! Seeds in record Wimbledon slump

Wimbledon claimed a share of an unwanted record Friday when the carnage of injuries and defeats meant the tournament had witnessed the joint worst ever performance by men’s and women’s top 10 seeds.

Only 10 of the top 10 men’s and women’s seeds (six men/four women) have reached the third round and, according to the International Tennis Federation (ITF), this is the joint-worst performance by the leading players at any Grand Slam in the Open Era.

It is also the worst performance by the women’s top 10 at any Slam, beating the previous low of five making the third round at the 2001 French Open.

Amongst the top women crashing out of Wimbledon in the first week were Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka while, in the men’s draw, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal suffered embarrassing defeats.

Meanwhile, there were only 12 five-set matches in the first two rounds of the men’s singles, the fewest at Wimbledon in the Open Era.