NO STOPPING Serena march
London, July 10: Serena Williams survived a major scare before sealing her 11th Wimbledon semi- final appearance as the seven- time champion hit back to beat Italy’s Camila Giorgi 3- 6, 6- 3, 6- 4 on Tuesday.
Williams was in danger of a stunning quarterfinal exit after world number 52 Giorgi became the first player in this year's tournament to take a set off the former world number one.
But Serena bludgeoned her way out of trouble over the final two sets to stay on course for an eighth All England Club triumph. The 36- year- old will play German 13th eed Julia Goerges on Thursday for a place in Saturday's final.
OSTAPENKO, KERBER IN SEMIS Jelena Ostapenko became the first Latvian woman to reach a Wimbledon semi- final as the former French Open champion beat Dominika Cibulkova 7- 5, 6- 4 on Tuesday.
Just four years ago, Ostapenko was winning the junior Wimbledon title and now the youngest player left in the women’s singles is only one win away from the final.
Ostapenko hasn’t dropped a set in her first five matches after the 12th seed battled past Slovakian world number 33 Cibulkova on Court One. Ostapenko’s second Grand Slam semi- final appearance will be against former Wimbledon finalist Angelique Kerber on Thursday.
Speaking after her win, Ostapenko revealed she is playing with more freedom now she no longer has the pressure of defending the title in Paris, where she was knocked out in the first round last month.
“It’s really great to be in the semis. I’m just enjoying being here,” Ostapenko said.
“Dominika was playing great, but I’m fighting until the end and I’m gaining more confidence.” Ostapenko also admitted she needed ice on her leg in between games after slapping herself with her hand in frustration at a missed chance.
“I hit myself when I missed a shot. It was too hard so I had to ice it,” she added.
Angelique Kerber clinched her third appearance in the Wimbledon semi- finals with a 6- 3, 7- 5 win over Russian 14th seed Daria Kasatkina on Tuesday.
Kerber is bidding to win the Wimbledon title for the first time after losing the 2016 final to Serena Williams.
The 30- year- old German remains on course after booking the seventh Grand Slam semi- final berth of her career.
Kerber, who won the Australian and US Open titles in 2016, plays former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko on Thursday for a place in Saturday’s final.
“I was expecting a close match. We’ve played so many tough matches,” Kerber said after she finally sealed the win on her seventh match point.
DEL POTRO VS RAFA Juan Martin del Potro set up a Wimbledon quarterfinal clash against Rafael Nadal when he downed Gilles Simon of France 76 ( 7/ 1), 7- 6 ( 7/ 5), 5- 7, 7- 6 ( 7/ 5) on Tuesday.
In a match suspended from Monday night due to darkness with the Argentine star two sets to one ahead, Del Potro sealed victory on a fifth match point after almost four and a half hours of action on Court Two.
On Wednesday, the 29year- old will be playing in his first Wimbledon quarter- final since 2013, when he went on to lose to Novak Djokovic in an epic semi- final.
Del Potro trails world number one Nadal 10- 5 in career meetings.