Roger Federer's military-style jacket had its second airing at Wimbledon yesterday but Maria Sharapova's latest outfit was packed away for a while after the 2004 champion got knocked out in round two.
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Gisela Dulko of Argentina reacts during the women's singles second round match against Maria Sharapova of Russia in the 2009 Wimbledon Tennis Championships in Wimbledon of London June 24 2009. [Xinhua]
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The Russian, who made her name at Wimbledon when she beat Serena Williams in the final as a teenager, suffered a 2-6, 6-3, 4-6 defeat by Argentina's Gisela Dulko, a player she had dropped just three games against in their two previous clashes.
Dulko prevailed on her fifth match point when Sharapova, who was seeded 24th after a shoulder injury despite a world ranking of 60, fired a forehand long to send the Russian crashing out in the second round for the second consecutive year.
Sharapova was not the only seed to tumble on another baking hot day in southwest London where huge crowds again flocked to the All England Club.
Two of the surprise semifinalists from last year, China's Zheng Jie and Germany's Rainer Schuettler, had their follow-up attempts cut short.
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Zheng Jie of China reacts during the women's singles second round match against Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia at the 2009 Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London on June 24, 2009. [Xinhua]
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Zheng, the first Chinese to reach the last four of a grand slam singles which she did as a wildcard in 2008, was beaten 3-6, 5-7 by former world No. 5 Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia. Schuettler, the men's 18th seed, was beaten 6-7 (3), 3-6, 2-6 by Israel's Dudi Sela while another German, Simon Greul, found fourth seed Novak Djokovic in fine form, the Serb booking his place in round three with a 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 victory.
