London (AFP) - Marin Cilic suffered a shock Wimbledon second round exit as last year's runner-up blew a two-set lead in his 3-6, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 7-5 loss to Argentina's Guido Pella on Thursday. When rain forced the tie to be postponed on Wednesday evening, third seed Cilic was leading by two sets against an unheralded opponent who had never won a match at Wimbledon before this year. But the Croatian, who lost to Roger Federer in the 2017 final, collapsed once the match resumed on Court One and world number 82 Pella took full advantage to set up a third round clash with Mackenzie McDonald. Cilic, the 2014 US Open champion, had been expected to mount a strong challenge for the Wimbledon title after winning the grass-court warm-up at Queen's Club two weeks ago. The big-serving 29-year-old had only once before lost to a player ranked as low as Pella at Wimbledon, when he was beaten by world number 145 Arnaud Clement 10 years ago. But after reaching the Australian Open final and French Open quarter-finals earlier this year, Cilic suffered one of the worst results of his career. Pella is into the third round at a Grand Slam for the first time. The 28-year-old admitted the over-night rain delay had been a huge boost as it allowed him to change his tactics and pull off a sensational fightback. "Yesterday he was playing so good, hitting the ball so hard that I couldn't do anything," Pella said. "So the rain helped me a lot. Today I played differently, tried to be more aggressive, he started to feel uncomfortable. "I tried to hit the ball hard and fight for every ball and I think in the end that's why I won. "I felt much more confident, served better and was so calm until the end. I'm very happy."<doc-sep>It was another fine day for Roger Federer, even though he spent it relaxing with his young family. A cheer must have gone up in the household when news of Marin Cilic’s demise filtered through on Thursday afternoon. There is a sense of calm in the Swiss veteran’s kingdom, where the outlook could hardly look more serene after another would-be champion met a grisly end. The challengers to Federer’s reign are teetering like Neymar at his theatrical worst, with one of the main obstacles blocking the No 1 seed’s path to a ninth Wimbledon title removed after Cilic succumbed to a second-round defeat by Guido Pella, an Argentinian who took advantage of a rain delay to fight back from two sets down. Here was proof that Federer, who plays Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff on Friday, does not always have to pick up a racket in order to prosper on these lawns. The Swiss has already seen Borna Coric, who defeated him in the Halle final last month, and Grigor Dimitrov depart from his side of the draw and the 36-year-old’s route to a 12th final looks even more inviting now Cilic no longer stands in his way. The caveat is that dangers still lurk. A quarter-final against the No 8 seed Kevin Anderson, who reached the third round with a four-set win over Italy’s Andreas Seppi, would be awkward for Federer, who could also be inconvenienced by Milos Raonic, the 13th seed. But Cilic was the main threat. The No 3 seed was a possible semi-final opponent and many had tipped him to gain revenge for his humiliation in last year’s final. Instead the affable Croat tripped himself up, losing 3-6, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-5 to a 28-year-old who had never tasted victory at Wimbledon before this week. Sign up to The Recap, our weekly email of editors’ picks It was a dreadful disappointment for Cilic, who was cruising at 6-3, 6-1, 3-2 before being held up by a rain delay on Wednesday evening. That was the turning point. While play had been called off on the outside courts because of slippery conditions, they were more optimistic on No 1 Court. Cilic must have thought he had time to finish the job against the world No 82. Yet when play resumed after a long and slightly farcical inspection of the grass, it was Pella who seized control, breaking to lead 4-3 after a Cilic slip. “It’s no good,” Cilic told the umpire, who decided to call it a night. Guido Pella makes a return during his second round victory over Marin Cilic. Photograph: Tom Jenkins Guardian They returned on Thursday and Pella took the third set, dominated a tie-break and held his nerve in the decider. Cilic, by contrast, was riddled with anxiety near the end. The former US Open champion’s footwork deserted him and he had to save two match points with some excellent serving in the 10th game. Pella, who faces Mackenzie Macdonald of the US next, kept pushing. A third opportunity went begging when he hit long off a second serve, but there was no escape for Cilic, who folded after netting a tight forehand. Cilic, who beat Novak Djokovic in the final at Queen’s last month, did not criticise the All England Club for Wednesday’s return. “We were waiting just behind the court,” he said. “When we came back it was not raining. When we warmed up, it started to rain again. The court was not as dry. We were talking with the referees. They said if we want to keep on we can. We decided to give it a try. But the court was still quite slippery. It was a bit unfortunate to finish the day like that. We had the choice. We just gave it a try.” Pella’s reward for giving it a go was the biggest win of his career. “It’s not my favourite surface but I am trying to improve,” he said. “The rain came and today I felt much more confident.” There is hope for the underdogs, then, and there was another upset when Thomas Fabbiano, an Italian qualifier, rounded off a 7-6 (7), 6-3, 7-6 (6) over Stan Wawrinka, who was not quite as fortunate as Switzerland’s other maestro.<doc-sep>Federer has been in fine form (Picture: TPN/Getty) Roger Federer admitted he was surprised to see Marin Cilic crash out of Wimbledon as he assessed how his half of the draw had opened up. The top seed has made light work of his opponents thus far, with Jan-Lennard Struff the latest casualty of the Swiss’ brilliance on Centre Court. Beaten 2017 finalist Cilic suffered arguably the most stunning exit of either the men’s or women’s draws, with the Queen’s champion falling to Guido Pella having led by two sets to love. Cilic had been due to face the eight-time Wimbledon champion in the semi-finals, with few players truly expected to stand in their way as they looked to set up a rematch of last year’s final. Cilic fell (Picture: AFP/Getty Images) But while Federer is still standing, he now faces the prospect of a different opponent in the last-four – should he reach that stage himself – and he views 2016 runner-up Milos Raonic as the favourite. ‘Yeah, so with Cilic, clearly we’re not there yet,’ he said after his 6-3 7-5 6-2 win over Struff. ‘I’m disappointed for him because he’s a good guy. ‘I really also expected him to go deep. I played Pella, as well, before in Stuttgart on the grass. I really favored Marin in that match. Will Raonic reach the semi-finals? (Picture: AFP/Getty) ‘But Pella did very well to fight back. It was played over two days. It was not just, like, one match. It felt like two matches, maybe also for him. Different conditions. Once he lost his rhythm, I guess he really struggled. ‘Yeah, I’m not thinking that far ahead. It’s true, I favoured him in that section together with maybe Raonic. I don’t know who else is in that section.’ The Canadian is still yet to book his spot in round four, with his match against Dennis Novak delayed with the pair locked at one set all. Federer, meanwhile, will take on Adrian Mannarino on Monday.<doc-sep>Cilic and Wawrinka were the only two former Grand Slam champions, apart from Federer, in the top half. Their departure guarantees a shake-up in that half of the draw, which, led by Federer, is now a delectable mix of greenhorns, ace kings and journeymen. The string of upsets at Wimbledon continued, this time on the men’s side, as Marin Cilic and Stanislas Wawrinka joined the scrapheap on Thursday. Third seed and last year’s finalist Cilic, one of the favourites going into the tournament, suffered a shock 6-3, 6-1, 4-6, 6-7(3), 5-7 defeat at the hands of Argentine Guido Pella. A little earlier in the evening, Wawrinka, who had raised hopes of a comeback by dismissing Grigor Dimitrov in the opening round, fell 7-6(7), 6-3, 7-6(6) to Italian qualifier Thomas Fabbiano. While Wimbledon lost some of its star power, the defeats may have further cleared Roger Federer’s path to the final. Not that the eight-time champion needs any favours from his rivals. But Cilic and Wawrinka were the only two former Grand Slam champions, apart from Federer, in the top half. Their departure guarantees a shake-up in that half of the draw, which, led by Federer, is now a delectable mix of greenhorns (Stafanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev, Mackenzie Macdonald), ace kings (John Isner, Kevin Anderson, Milos Raonic, Sam Querrey) and journeymen (Fabbiano, Pella, Radu Albot, Adrian Mannarino). In one of the biggest slip-ups on the slick Wimbledon grass, Cilic went out in the second round after being two sets up. The match had started on Wednesday and the big-hitting Croat looked right at home on the green turf, unfurling his massive wingspan to drive home winners. His 28-year-old opponent after all was playing only his third main draw match at the Major and was in the second round at Wimbledon for the very first time. The clouds of uncertainty had begun to gather for Cilic after the second rain delay on Wednesday. Play resumed on Court No 1, even though the other courts were deemed far too slippery, with the third set level at 3-3. The Croat struggled to find his footing, even slipped once, literally, at break point down, to eventually lose the rally and the game. Play was called off for the day, but the left-handed Pella had the tiniest foothold. Cilic’s former coach, Goran Ivanisevic, had once said: “In every game I play there are three players in me that could surface anytime, Good Goran, Bad Goran and Crazy Goran! They can all serve aces.” While Cilic is hardly as mercurial as his fellow Croat, the good Cilic, who had been way too good for Pella on Wednesday, failed to turn up the next day. He still served aces, 27 in total, and hit unreturnable serves to dig himself out of a hole. But an unsure, nervy Cilic couldn’t finish the job he had started so brightly. “I was just not feeling as comfortable as yesterday with my hitting. I was not as accurate and I was just missing some easy balls, giving him a chance to come back," 2014 US Open champion Cilic later said. "It was not just the pressure. It was me not executing my shots on the court well enough.” The Argentine, meanwhile, was getting more used to the surface and stage. He dug deep, ran hard and produced some splendid tennis under pressure. Pella quashed a hint of a comeback from Cilic in the fourth set — when he went up 3-1 — by breaking him back in the next game. In a crafty rally on varied pace and spin, Pella chased down a drop shot and scooped it for a forehand winner to go level 3-3. The Argentine struck a forehand pass to go set point up at 6-2 in the tie-breaker, and then another one to bag the set. Having done all the hard work, Pella refused to give in in the decider. He saved three points from Cilic. And even when the seasoned Cilic saved two break points of his own at 4-5 down, Pella persisted. He got more chances on the Croat’s next service game. Though Cilic saved one more with an ace, Pella kept badgering Cilic’s forehand, usually his stronger wing. Two successive forehand errors from Cilic handed Pella the biggest victory of his 11-year pro career. In all, Cilic hit 37 unforced errors off the forehand in the match that lasted three hours and 13 minutes. “Today, I started to play more aggressively and fight for every ball and that is why I won,” the 28-year-old Pella said. “Grass isn't my favourite surface but I started to feel more confident and served a lot better.” The Argentine wasn’t the only one to upstage a former Major champion on the day. Italy’s Fabbiano, who had beaten India’s Yuki Bhambri in the opening round, put the finishing touches on his victory over Wawrinka after being 7-6, 7-6, 5-6 up on Wednesday evening. Playing only his fifth tour match on grass, the 5’8” Fabbiano slayed three-time Grand Slam champion Wawrinka. While Wawrinka has struggled for top-form since returning from a knee surgery last year and slipped to 224 in the rankings, he showed he still has the game to beat some of the better players. “I'm really disappointed to lose the match,” said Wawrinka, who has never gone beyond the quarter-finals at Wimbledon. “During the match, I was a (trying to find) my game a little bit. I was not aggressive enough and not moving well enough.” He had fought back from a set down against sixth seed Dimitrov to score an unlikely victory in the first round. But his comeback was nipped in the bud by a determined Fabbiano, who was completely unfazed by the Swiss’ reputation or repertoire of shots. Wawrinka, for his part, held set points in both the tie-breaks but just could not deliver the knockout blow.<doc-sep>
Last updated on .From the section Tennis Wimbledon 2018 on the BBC Venue: All England Club, Wimbledon Dates: 2-15 July Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Red Button, Connected TVs and the BBC Sport website and app; Live Radio 5 live and 5 live sports extra commentary; Text commentary online. Third seed Marin Cilic squandered a two-set lead as he was stunned by Argentina's Guido Pella in the second round of Wimbledon. The Croat - one of the leading title contenders after reaching last year's final - was well in control before rain stopped play on Wednesday evening. However, Pella held firm to force a deciding fifth set on Thursday. The world number 82 converted his fourth match point to complete a surprise 3-6 1-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4) 7-5 win. It is the biggest win of Pella's career and he is now in the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time. "The rain coming helped me a lot," the 28-year-old, who had not won a match at Wimbledon in his two previous visits, told BBC Sport. "Yesterday he was playing so, so well and I couldn't do anything. Pella was playing in a five-set match for only the eighth time "Today, I started to play more aggressively and fight for every ball and that is why I won. Grass isn't my favourite surface but I started to feel more confident and served a lot better." On Friday, Pella will play American world number 103 Mackenzie Mcdonald who will also be making his first appearance in the last 32 of a major. "Every time you win a match in a Grand Slam it is a good feeling," he added. "Tomorrow is a different match and we will both have pressure so it will be a tense match but I will try to be calm and win." Cilic told BBC Sport that he struggled to find his fluency in the final two sets of the match. "Yesterday I played great, today not so and that is a big disappointment," he said. "In the fourth I was struggling to find my rhythm, missing balls I hadn't been missing earlier and not serving as well. "I was not as accurate and he was starting to play and serve better. I was giving him chances to keep going and he was also raising his level." Three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka was another to be eliminated. The Swiss, who has dropped to 224 in the world after a series of injuries, lost 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 7-6 (8-6) to Italian qualifier Thomas Fabbiano. And fourth seed Alexander Zverev is in trouble in his match against American Taylor Fritz. Play was suspended late on due to bad light on court one with the German trailing 6-4 5-7 6-7. But there were no problems for Argentine fifth seed Juan Martin del Potro who only needed one hour and 34 minutes to beat Feliciano Lopez 6-4 6-1 6-2, winning 31 out of the 32 points behind a successful first serve (97%). US Open finalist and eighth seed Kevin Anderson advanced after a 6-3 6-7 6-3 6-4 victory over Fabbiano's compatriot Andreas Seppi. American ninth seed John Isner sent down 64 aces in his five-set success against Belgian qualifier Ruben Bemelmans - the third-highest number of aces in a match at Wimbledon after the 113 and 110 managed by Isner and Nicolas Mahut respectively in their record-breaking marathon encounter in 2010. And Australian Nick Kyrgios was warned for swearing in his straight-sets win over Dutchman Robin Haase. The 15th seed treated the crowd to some clever strokeplay and some trick shots on his way to a 6-3 6-4 7-5 triumph.