Tennis: Wimbledon - Ukrainian Mystic Meg

THE DISMISSAL of any seeded player by a lowly ranked opponent in a Grand Slam is generally described as a shock result, but it appears Elena Tatarkova's first-round victory over the 11th seed Mary Pierce was a surprise to everyone but the Ukrainian player herself.

After a tight 7-6, 6-3 win the 22-year-old Tatarkova, who is based in Fulham for the Championships, said: "I went from my friend's house down to practise and to find out about the draw for Wimbledon. It was then that it came into my mind that I would play Mary Pierce. I knew exactly the clothes I would be wearing to play in but I didn't get a clear picture of the score. People were asking me but all I knew was I was throwing up my arms."

Tatarkova, ranked 87 in the world, admits that although the premonition came to her in a flash she did smile when she found out who her first- round opponent was. "It didn't alter my attitude going into the match," the player, who has never won a match at Wimbledon in five visits, said.

Not a regular Mystic Meg, the 5ft 7in left-hander would not be drawn into predicting the result of her second-round match.