Surreal, unreal . . . surely something is up this year

Has there ever been a more astonishing week at Wimbledon? Every day has brought another surprise exit from the tournament, with injuries and shock departures scrambling the draw.

The first upset was relatively quiet. On Monday morning Sara Errani, the ladies’ fifth seed, went down in straight sets to Monica Puig. There were a few raised eyebrows but at that point no one realised that the bonfire of the seeds had begun crackling.

As Errani crumbled, so did the second seed Victoria Azarenka’s right knee, which she injured while slipping in her first-round match against Maria Joao Koehler.

The injury forced Azarenka out yesterday, shortly before her second-round match was due to start. In the men’s draw, things were also dramatic right from the first day, with Rafael Nadal blasted out against Steve Darcis. During that terrific game, however, Darcis injured his shoulder, so he also had to quit.

He was joined on a very black Wednesday by the withdrawals of sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, as well as Marin Cilic, John Isner and Radek Stepanek — all familiar names.

Then last night, Roger Federer was deposed by world No116 Sergiy Stakhovsky. Surreal. Unreal.

But there is something up this year. The ladies’ draw has been gutted just as ruthlessly. Maria Sharapova was ousted by Michelle Larcher de Brito yesterday while Ana Ivanovic was beaten by Eugenie Bouchard. Is this a guard change or just a freak year? One thing is certain: no one is safe.