Wimbledon: Stan Wawrinka gets knocked out in 5 sets

American Opelka beats three-time major winner Wawrinka 7-5, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4, 8-6; third seed Karolina Pliskova advances

London: Three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka was knocked out of Wimbledon yesterday, falling in five sets to 6ft 11in (2.1m) Reilly Opelka as defending champion Novak Djokovic waited to push his bid for a fifth title.

Two-time quarter-finalist Wawrinka, 34, was beaten 7-5, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4, 8-6 by his American opponent, the tallest man in the sport and 13 years his junior. Opelka fired 23 aces and 59 winners and goes on to face either 2016 runner-up Milos Raonic of Canada or Robin Haase of the Netherlands.

Opelka will be appearing in the third round at a Slam for the first time having never won a grass court match in his career prior to coming to Wimbledon.

Czech Republic’s Karolina Pliskova returns to Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig during their second round match in London yesterday. Pic /AFP

Wawrinka won warm applause for giving a line judge a warm embrace after accidentally colliding with her as he sprinted to hit a backhand.

"I was a bit too far to return a serve. I think I went against her, so I was sure she had some pain and was not happy, so I gave her a little hug," said the genial Swiss.

After beating the Wawrinka, Opelka conducted a TV interview in the corridors of Court Two where his head almost scraped the ceiling.

But he is glad to be at Wimbledon which at least assures him of a comfortable night's sleep. In Eastbourne last week, it was a different matter.

When asked if he was able to fit snugly into his seaside hotel bed, he sighed: "Not really."

However, he bristles at the attention his giant frame attracts. "I have answered this question, like, 150 times. It's the same as it was yesterday, and, I don't know. Close, 6'11", 7'0". Not sure."

He does have one major beef with England. "Eastbourne didn't have air conditioning, which is shocking. It's like 100 degrees. Every year I come here, and, like, Why is there no AC? "They're, like, Oh, it's never hot here. Every year it's over 80 degrees. I'm, like, That's not true."

Also feeling the pain was Russia's Margarita Gasparyan who was forced to retire when just two points from victory against Ukraine eighth seed Elina Svitolina.

World No. 62 Gasparyan was 7-5, 5-4 ahead when she collapsed to the ground on Court Three, suffering with cramping. Although she bravely tried to continue, the Russian, who has undergone three knee surgeries in her career, was forced to quit.

Czech third seed Karolina Pliskova reached the last 32 with a 6-0, 6-4 win over Puerto Rico's Olympic champion Monica Puig.

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