LONDON: Novak Djokovic targets the Wimbledon semi-finals on Tuesday while Iga Swiatek plays in the last eight for the first time.
AFP Sport looks at the day’s four quarter-final matches (x denotes seeding; Players representing Russia and Belarus are banned from competing under the name or flag of their countries).
Jannik Sinner (ITA x8) v Roman Safiullin
Sinner is in the quarter-finals for a second successive year and will be happy to see that it’s not Novak Djokovic staring back at him from over the net.
Twelve months ago, he squandered a two-set lead in his quarter-final to lose in five against the Serb, who went on to capture a seventh title.
Slender in frame, Sinner packs a huge punch, delivering the third-fastest serve of the tournament so far at 139 mph (223.7 km/h).
While 21-year-old Sinner is playing in his fifth quarter-final at the majors, Tuesday will be uncharted territory for 92nd-ranked Safiullin, who is making his Wimbledon debut at the age of 25.
He had never previously got past the second round at the majors but has knocked out two former semi-finalists in Roberto Bautista Agut and Denis Shapovalov.
Success will not prompt him to switch to a plusher hotel despite a guaranteed $430,000 in prize money and a rise in rankings to the top 45.
“Why should I change it? Nice hotel. Of course it’s not like five stars, but I like the bed. Everything for me fits.”
Sinner defeated Safiullin in straight sets in their only meeting at the ATP Cup in Australia last year.
Andrey Rublev (x7) v Novak Djokovic (SRB x2)
Defending champion Djokovic is just three wins away from a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon title and 24th Grand Slam.
He is appearing in his 14th Wimbledon quarter-final, 56th at the Slams and is looking increasingly unstoppable.
Even Hubert Hurkacz eventually cracked in the fourth round when Djokovic ended the Pole’s run of 67 unbroken service games at the tournament this year.
Djokovic now has 90 wins from 100 matches at the All England Club and has not lost on Centre Court in 10 years.
“I feel a great connection with this court. Every match that I win, every time I step on the court I feel more confident to play the match and hopefully the love affair continues for a long time,” he said.
Rublev is in the last eight for the first time, completing the full set of quarter-final appearances at the Slams.
He has only defeated Djokovic once in four meetings and managed just seven games against the Serb in a sobering straight-sets loss in the Australian Open quarter-finals this year.
Iga Swiatek (POL x1) v Elina Svitolina (UKR)
World number one Swiatek is in the quarter-finals for the first time but only after saving two match points to defeat Olympic champion Belinda Bencic in the fourth round.
That was a 14th consecutive win for the US Open and French Open champion, who will be playing in a ninth straight quarter-final this year.
Swiatek wears a ribbon in the colours of Ukraine on her cap when she plays so her clash with Svitolina will guarantee an emotional afternoon.
Svitolina, a semi-finalist in 2019, was in tears after defeating Victoria Azarenka from a set down in the fourth round, telling the crowd her win was also a victory for Ukraine.
“We respect each other. We like each other. It’s all pretty positive,” said Swiatek.
“It’s good to have these kinds of players on tour that are nice and have good values.”
Russian 16-year-old Andreeva reaches Wimbledon second week
Swiatek won the pair’s only previous match, a straight-sets win on the clay at Rome in 2021.
Jessica Pegula (USA x4) v Marketa Vondrousova (CZE)
After dropping a set in her opening match against fellow American Lauren Davis, Pegula has sailed into her first Wimbledon quarter-final.
Pegula is only the fifth American woman to reach the quarters at all four majors in the past quarter century, joining Venus and Serena Williams, Madison Keys and Sloane Stephens.
However, she is still to take the next step to the semi-finals.
Vondrousova has knocked out three seeded players in making the last eight of a major for the first time since finishing runner-up at the French Open in 2021.
Until this year, Vondrousova had won just one match in four visits to the All England Club.
Tuesday’s clash will be the first meeting between the Czech and Pegula.
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