Wimbledon day 10: Carlos Alcaraz moves on while women’s semi-finals are set

By Sports Desk July 12, 2023

World number one Carlos Alcaraz continued his march towards a potential final showdown with Novak Djokovic on another dramatic day at Wimbledon.

The Spaniard powered past fellow 20-year-old Holger Rune, while in the women’s draw Ons Jabeur avenged defeat to Elena Rybakina in last year’s final.

Elsewhere, Daniil Medvedev delivered the knockout blow on Chris Eubanks’ remarkable run in SW19 and Aryna Sabalenka sailed into the semi-finals with a demolition of Madison Keys.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at how day 10 at the All England Club unfolded.

Rune punished by Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz beat fellow young gun and childhood friend Holger Rune to reach the semi-finals for the first time.

Alcaraz and sixth seed Rune played doubles together when they were 14 and were the first men under 21 to face each other in a Wimbledon quarter-final in the open era.

It was the first time they had met at a grand slam, the start of a rivalry which could last for over a decade, and it was the top seed who came out top with a 7-6 (3) 6-4 6-4 victory on Centre Court.

“I think I’m playing at a great level, I didn’t expect to play such a great level on this surface so for me, it’s crazy,” he said.

Tweet of the dayJabeur marches Ons

Ons Jabeur found it too painful to rewatch last year’s Wimbledon final defeat by Elena Rybakina but she will happily take another look at the rematch.

The sixth seed, who also lost to Iga Swiatek in the US Open final last year, will take on world number two Aryna Sabalenka in the last four after fighting from a set down to defeat Rybakina 6-7 (5) 6-4 6-1.

Jabeur missed a set point in the opener but fought back impressively, hitting more winners and making fewer errors than her opponent, who has established a fledgling big three in the women’s game this season with Sabalenka and Swiatek.

“Until this day, I couldn’t watch this match,” said Jabeur. “I can watch today’s match. That’s OK.”

Shot of the dayEubanks floored

Daniil Medvedev delivered the knockout blow on Chris Eubanks’ remarkable Wimbledon run by booking a semi-final spot with a thrilling five-set win.

World number 43 Eubanks looked set to once again punch above his weight in south-west London after leading the 2021 US Open champion 2-1 going into a fourth-set tie-break.

But third seed Medvedev battled back to win 6-4 1-6 4-6 7-6 (4) 6-1 in a match played under the Court One roof, despite glorious sunshine.

Quote of the dayPicture of the dayStat of the day

Related items

  • Swiatek makes it back-to-back finals with Gauff win Swiatek makes it back-to-back finals with Gauff win

    Iga Swiatek is through to the Italian Open final for the third time after seeing off Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday.

    There was little to separate the two in the opening 50 minutes as they played to 4-4 before Gauff left an opening with back-to-back double faults, and Swiatek took full advantage.

    The world number one broke Gauff’s serve four times, including in the fifth game of the second set to swing the momentum firmly in her favour after one hour 48 minutes on the court.

    Swiatek has now reached back-to-back WTA 1000 finals after winning the Madrid Open earlier this month and could face Aryna Sabalenka for the title once more if the Belarusian gets past Danielle Collins in the other semi-final.

    Data Debrief: Unstoppable on clay

    Swiatek has now won 11 consecutive matches, and registered her 10th victory over Gauff in 11 meetings between the two - she has won all four matches against the American on clay. 

    Since the format’s introduction in 2009, Swiatek (40 per cent, 12/30) holds the highest percentage of finals reached from WTA-1000 main draws entered. Serena Williams (36.7 per cent, 18/49) is the next best in the format's history.

    Since the WTA rankings were first published in 1975, Swiatek has become only the third player to reach multiple Italian Open finals as the WTA's number one, along with Serena Williams (three) and Monica Seles (two). She will be looking for her third Italian Open title on Saturday.

  • Paul sees off Hurkacz in seesaw quarter-final Paul sees off Hurkacz in seesaw quarter-final

    Tommy Paul reached the semi-final of the Italian Open after pulling through a rollercoaster clash with Hubert Hurkacz on Thursday.

    The number 14 seed downed Hurkacz 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 in the quarter-final, keeping his composure during his two hours and 43 minutes on the court.

    After winning the first set, Hurkacz fought back to win the second, but the American was not out of the contest yet as he clawed back from 0-2 down early in the third.

    He closed out the win in a dramatic fashion, fending off six break points while letting three of his own slip, to eventually set up a semi-final against Stefanos Tsitsipas or Nicolas Jerry on Friday. 

    Data Debrief: Into the final four

    After beating Daniil Medvedev in the previous round, Paul has now won back-to-back matches against top-10 opponents for the first time in his professional career with his victory over Hurkacz. 

    Paul earned his 150th tour-level win to take him through to his third Masters 1000 semi-final, as he aims to become the first American finalist in Rome since Andre Agassi in 2002.

  • Zverev overcomes injury scare to maintain Italian Open charge Zverev overcomes injury scare to maintain Italian Open charge

    Alexander Zverev moved a step closer to his second Italian Open title with a hard-fought 6-4 6-3 quarter-final win over Taylor Fritz, overcoming an injury scare en route to the last four.

    Zverev – who triumphed on the clay in Rome back in 2017 – produced a dominant serving performance against another heavy hitter in Fritz, but only after an awkward fall early on.

    The German sought medical attention after falling on his stomach in the third service game of the match, the slip leaving him bleeding from both hands. 

    However, he soon shook off that knock and did not allow Fritz a single break point in a deeply impressive display, setting up a semi-final meeting with Chile's Alejandro Tabilo – the conqueror of Novak Djokovic – for Friday.

    Data Debrief: Zverev gathering momentum

    Zverev, the lone former champion remaining in the men's draw, is surely the favourite to win a tournament characterised by unfortunate withdrawals and shock defeats for the biggest names.

    Seven of Zverev's 21 tour-level titles have come on clay, and he is yet to drop a single set in Rome this year. His three-year wait for an ATP 1000 title could soon be over.

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.