Wimbledon proves more unpredictable for women's seeds

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Seven-time champion Serena Williams made things look comfortable with two victories at Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships, which proved wildly unpredictable as some other top women players could not stand after three days.

Among the top-eight seeded woman who all exited on Wednesday, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark was the No. 2-seeded for being the reigning Australian Open champion.

Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark looks dejected during her match against Ekaterina Makarova of Russia on day three of the Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. /VCG Photo

However, the 27-year-old Danish was not exactly gracious in defeat after staving off five match points, but not the sixth, in what became a 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 loss to 35th-ranked Ekaterina Makarova of Russia in the second round at the All England Club.

Wozniacki complained about the flying insects at Wimbledon, a problem that also came up last year at the tournament. She demanded that bug spray be brought to the court and wondered aloud whether play should be halted because of a brief drizzle. Makarova, too, called the scene "a little bit strange and different" and "a little bit uncomfortable."

Speaking of the match, Wozniacki said, "it's frustrating because I feel like I could have gone and done something really great here." Instead, it's the fourth time in the past seven years that she's out in the first or second round. She almost put together quite a comeback, though.

Among other women who lost on Tuesday included US Open champion Sloane Stephens, former Wimbledon champions Petra Kvitova and Maria Sharapova.

American Venus Williams plays a backhand in her match against Romanian Alexandra Dulgheru on the third day of the 2018 Wimbledon championships, July 4, 2018. Williams defeated Dulgheru 4-6 6-0 6-1. /VCG Photo

American Madison Keys, the 10th seed, beat Thailand's Luksika Kumkhum 6-4 6-3, and there were also wins for ninth-seed Venus Williams and seventh seed Karolina Pliskova on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, seven-times champion Serena Williams moved up a gear at Wimbledon to beat Bulgarian qualifier Viktoriya Tomova 6-1 6-4 and managed to reach the third round.

"It's hard. Everyone's playing hard. No one's giving you anything for free. In my first round, I didn't get anything for free," the 23-time Grand Slam champion Williams said.

"There's just an abundance of talent but it's very unpredictable at the top," three-time Wimbledon champion Chris Evert said on the eve of Wimbledon where she is working as a summarizer for broadcaster ESPN.

"There are 10 women that can win a Grand Slam. It's unpredictable. It's still wonderful to watch. Here on grass, you don't know what to expect," said Simona Halep of Romania. "Some players can play best tennis. The top players can play a little bit less. You never know."

(With input from Reuters and AP)