Rain delays women's quarter-finals at Wimbledon

LONDON (Reuters) - Rain delayed the start of women's quarter-final day at Wimbledon on Tuesday and the Center Court roof was closed.

German Sabine Lisicki's match against ninth-seeded Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli was due to start once the roof was shut but Petra Kvitova's clash with Tsvetana Pironkova on Court One, which has no roof, can only begin when the rain stops.

Fifth seed Maria Sharapova takes on Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova later on Center Court with fourth seed Victoria Azarenka due to face Austria's Tamira Paszek on Court One.

There was confusion among fans as organisers initially kept the Center Court roof open despite the presence of dark clouds above and only began to close the structure once drizzle began and the official start time had passed.

(Reporting by Mark Meadows)