Wimbledon 2007: Champion Amelie Mauresmo Knocked Out

Defending Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo has been knocked out of this year's tournament by Nicole Vaidisova. Mauresmo was seeded fourth in the women's draw, and this defeat marks her worst performance in the tournament since 2001.

The fourth-round tie was repeatedly interrupted by rain and Mauresmo struggled to establish her rhythm, with Vaidisova winning the match 7-6, 4-6, 6-1.

Mauresmo, who won her first two grand slam titles last year, endured 14 double-faults and 37 unforced errors as she utterly failed to control her serve. She held three set points when she led 6-3 in the first set tie-break but then lost the next five points. After winning the second set, she fell behind 3-0 in the third and was broken again in the sixth game, allowing Vaidisova to serve out the match and secure a comfortable win.

The surprise result means that Vaidisova has reached the quarter-finals for the first time at Wimbledon, where she will play either Ana Ivanovic or Nadia Petrova. Vaidisova, the 14th seed, reached the semi-finals at last year's French Open and this year's Australian Open.

Earlier, Svetlana Kuznetsova won her fourth-round match against Austria's Tamira Paszek in straight sets. Kuznetsova, the fifth seed, had little trouble in beating her unseeded opponent, who is just 16 years old, 6-3, 6-2.

Paszek, competing in her first Wimbledon, had beaten the 12th seed Elena Dementieva on Monday but did little to trouble Kuznetsova.

With Kuznetsova having taken the first set, play halted for a 30-minute rain break. After the resumption Paszek promptly lost her serve as Kuznetsova sent a backhand down the line. When she started the seventh game with a double-fault, Kuznetsova had sufficient impetus to secure a second break and then hold her own serve to complete the win.

Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open champion, utilised her powerful groundstrokes, and displayed an unusual confidence coming into the net. She will hope to carry her form into the quarter-finals where she will face the winner of the match between her compatriot Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams.