This Place Isn’t Going to Seed : Wimbledon: Chang, Courier, Edberg, Medvedev and Sukova are second-round losers.

Occasional upsets at a Grand Slam tournament can be welcome, for often they usher out a tired and too-familiar player and make way for a newer, fresher face.

But when five seeded players lose in one day at Wimbledon, it seems more like anarchy than natural selection.

That occurred during Thursday’s scorching second-round matches, when seeded players either wilted in the heat of a relentless summer sun or succumbed to youth, ambition or their own folly.

The men’s casualties: fifth-seeded Michael Chang, who lost to Petr Korda of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4; 11th-seeded Jim Courier, who lost to Cedric Pioline of France, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4; 13th-seeded Stefan Edberg of Sweden, who lost to Dick Norman of Belgium, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; and 15th-seeded Andrei Medvedev of Ukraine, who lost to Jeff Tarango of Manhattan Beach, 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.

In women’s play, 16th-seeded Helena Sukova of the Czech Republic lost to Yone Kamio of Japan, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Of these, Edberg’s dismissal was the oddest. That he lost was not shocking--the seeding of the two-time Wimbledon champion is more a courtesy than a reflection of his current skills. But he lost to a player ranked 178th in the world, a man who, at 6 feet 8, has the distinction of being the tallest player ever at Wimbledon.

Chang’s fall produced the loudest thud. Korda, ranked 54th, is a steady but seldom spectacular player who is best remembered for having been a ball boy when Ivan Lendl played Davis Cup for the former Czechoslovakia.

Chang, who was a finalist in the French Open earlier this month, looked hapless against the 6-3 left-hander, who recently has been coached by Edberg’s longtime coach, Tony Pickard.

“I’m happy that I won, but tomorrow I must put my feet back to the ground and concentrate,” Korda said.

There was no telling how Chang felt, since he declined to meet the press.

Edberg lost in the first round here last year, but this loss was to an alternate. Norman lost in the last round of qualifying but was the fourth of six “lucky losers” admitted to the tournament after injury or withdrawal of entered players. He was told on the eve of Wimbledon that he would play.

He has made the most of his luck. Utilizing a big serve, Norman has beaten two former Wimbledon champions, Pat Cash in the first round and now Edberg. Norman, in fact, said he had never seen Edberg, the preeminent grass-courter of an era, play.

“I didn’t know how good he was on grass,” Norman said. “I was asking myself, ‘Is he going to hit my serve back like he hits a woman’s serve back?’ I had no idea how good he was.”

Edberg is not as good as he once was, but he is still capable of doing damage, especially if his kick serve is functioning.

“I didn’t serve very well today,” Edberg said. “It’s tricky serving against a guy who makes a few returns here and there. He got confident. He’s like a giant. You feel like David and Goliath out there. He hit the ball and it really bounced up really high today. All he had to do was almost walk into the net and put the volleys away.”

Norman’s official biography offers scant information. Under Grand Slam highlights is the simple entry, “Never Played.” Where singles and doubles titles should be listed are two large zeros. There is information that Norman reached the semifinals at the Bombay Challenger by defeating David Nainkin.

His news conference on Thursday was the 24-year-old’s first, and it showed.

“I’m quite happy,” Norman said, then left.

Courier was not particularly happy after his loss to Pioline, ranked No. 55.

“If you don’t serve well on grass, it’s no mystery, you are going to be in trouble,” Courier said. “I didn’t serve too well, and I paid the price.”

Courier has taken a particular beating at Wimbledon, where in his youth he was perceived as petulant and arrogant. Maturity has brought change, and his new laid-back approach has been noted by the aggressive British press, as noted in the following observation: “A couple of years ago, when you were No. 1, you seemed like a real mean [SOB] and now you seem like a nice guy.”

The old Courier might have attacked the man. The new Courier merely laughed.

“That’s OK,” he said. “I take great pride in him calling me [an SOB].”

An old player putting on a new face, even as he leaves. The Wimbledon way is often the way out.