LIVE | Wimbledon 2023: Vondrousova becomes first unseeded woman to win Wimbledon in Open era
Carlos Alcaraz takes on Daniil Medvedev on Friday for a place in the Wimbledon final, where history-chasing Novak Djokovic will likely be lying in wait.
Djokovic is within sight of two seismic records - equalling Roger Federer's mark of eight men's singles titles at Wimbledon and Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slam titles. "Last year I played a very good match against him," he said."I have learned about it. Hopefully I can show this also on the court.
The 20-year-old Alcaraz, who won the US Open in 2022 and beat Medvedev convincingly in the Indian Wells final earlier this year, is talking a good game. Tunisian world number six Jabeur fought back from a set and 4-2 down to defeat Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 6-7 , 6-4, 6-3 to reach a second successive final at the tournament.
"I'm very proud of myself because maybe old me would have lost the match today and went back home already but I'm glad that I kept digging deep and finding the strength," she said. Sabalenka's spirit ebbed away and she was broken in the sixth game of the decider before Jabeur claimed victory on a fifth match point with a clean ace.
On Thursday, the 24-year-old was rewarded for her attacking approach, breaking serve six times and hitting 22 winners to Svitolina's nine. Svitolina then undid all her hard work to be broken again in the eighth game before pushing a forehand long to hand her opponent a place in the final. Saturday's final will be her third at the Slams after losing to Elena Rybakina at Wimbledon and then to Iga Swiatek at the US Open last year.
Had Sabalenka gone on to win the title on Saturday, she would have received the trophy from Princess Catherine, the wife of the heir to the British throne, a year after all Belarusian and Russian players were banned from the tournament following the invasion of Ukraine.Sabalenka looked on course to comfortably make the final in the early stages on Thursday.
Sabalenka, who had defeated Jabeur on her way to the last four at Wimbledon in 2021, broke for a 3-2 lead in the second set when her Tunisian opponent served up her third double fault. The 28-year-old, who only returned from maternity leave in April, went down 6-3, 6-3 to the unseeded Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic.
"Even today when I was down, I got a lot of support," she said."I'm really thankful for the crowd to support me, be there for me, and all Ukrainian people as well. World number 42 Vondrousova came through 6-3, 6-3 and will face either second-ranked Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus or last year's runner-up Ons Jabeur for the title on Saturday.
"I was crazy nervous. I was nervous the whole match. I was leading 4-0 in the second set and she fought back." Svitolina then undid all her hard work to be broken again in the eighth game before pushing a forehand long to hand her opponent a place in the final.Carlos Alcaraz stayed on track for a Wimbledon title showdown against defending champion Novak Djokovic on Wednesday as Ons Jabeur avenged her painful defeat in last year's final.
Alcaraz is the youngest semi-finalist at Wimbledon since Djokovic in 2007 but next up on Friday is a tough-looking encounter with third seed Medvedev. In a repeat of the 2022 title match, Tunisian sixth seed Jabeur came from behind to beat defending champion Elena Rybakina 6-7 , 6-4, 6-1 in their quarter-final.Rybakina cracked in the 10th game of the second set, allowing Jabeur to level the match and the Tunisian maintained her momentum to storm to victory.The Belarusian powered into a second Wimbledon semi-final with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Madison Keys of the United States.
Alcaraz faced just one break point in the entire quarter-final, which he snuffed out, hitting 35 winners against 13 unforced errors.The US Open champion, who now has 10 straight wins on grass, was delighted with his performance against his fellow 20-year-old."For me, it is crazy." Eubanks, who had shocked fifth-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas in the previous round, was attempting to become just the third man to reach the semi-finals on debut.
Sabalenka was banned from the 2022 tournament following the invasion of Ukraine, along with all Russian and Belarusian players."When I was a little girl I dreamed of winning Wimbledon," she added.Ukrainian wild card Elina Svitolina will meet unseeded Czech player Marketa Vondrousova in the other women's semi-final.Carlos Alcaraz saw off Holger Rune in straight sets on Wednesday to stay on course for a Wimbledon title showdown against defending champion Novak Djokovic.
It was a similar story in the second set until Rune dumped a forehand into the net in the ninth game to give the Spaniard break point. The world number three from Russia triumphed 6-4, 1-6, 4-6, 7-6 , 6-1 and will face either top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz or sixth seed Holger Rune for a place in Sunday's final.
"After the first set, I didn't want to go five sets but when I lost the third, I was happy to go five," said Medvedev who fired 28 aces."I started to sink and make mistakes but after the third set I started to build something. I had more opportunities in the fourth set and after the tiebreak I played amazing."
A frustrated Medvedev was handed a code violation for lobbing a ball that hit a courtside camera operator in the eighth game.Serve dominated the fourth set as Eubanks passed 100 aces for the tournament but it was the more composed Medvedev who claimed the tiebreaker when the American buried a backhand volley into the net.
"But at the same time I was thinking that, 'OK, it's a good time to reset and start everything over again'.Since the All England Club ban, Sabalenka has made the semi-finals of the US Open, won the Australian Open in January and then reached another Grand Slam semi-final at the French Open in June. The 28-year-old will face Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka for a place in Saturday's final at the All England Club.
abeur took advantage of a loose volley at the net from Rybakina to break again and edge into a 6-5 lead.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Africa Live this week: 10-16 July 2023 - BBC NewsGhana has defended its policy of sending asylum seekers back to Burkina Faso, after the UN refugee agency urged it to stop deportations. Ghana said it was following international protocol on its asylum policy.
Read more »
Most South African consumers unhappy with brands - report | The CitizenBased on a survey by Rogerwilco, of 2 000 customers and 50 business leaders, the report indicates a growing disappointment towards brands that fail to meet customer expectations. Read more here 👇
Read more »
Africa's week in pictures: 7-13 July 2023A selection of the best photos from across Africa and beyond this week.
Read more »
Asia stocks set for best week of 2023, dollar reels on dovish Fed betsAsian stocks rose on Friday, on course for their best week this year, as a cooling in U.S. inflation stoked speculation that the Federal Reserve could pause rate hikes after this month.
Read more »
Delta lifts 2023 forecast as travel demand stays loftyDelta reported record results in the second quarter on Thursday, raising its full-year forecast on continually robust travel demand as more international markets reopen.
Read more »
2023 Tax Season Has Arrived – Everything You Need To Know In Order...Tax. The word alone sends shivers down your spine, never mind the discomfort you might feel spending just one day queuing at your nearest SARS branch.
Read more »