Djokovic in q-finals
Muguruza and Williams march into semi-finals
THREE-time champion Novak Djokovic overcame an injury scare to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the ninth time and then lashed out at the Centre Court, claiming a hole has opened up on the famous surface.
The second seed needed treatment on his long-standing right shoulder injury during his 6-2, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 win over France’s Adrian Mannarino yesterday.
But as well as worrying about the state of his shoulder, the 30-year-old slammed the poor quality of the All England Club courts.
“I told the chair umpire that there was a hole in the middle of the court on the service line. I showed him and he was not very pleased about it,” said Djokovic.
“The courts are not great this year and many of the players feel the same. I am sure the groundsmen are the best in the world, but grass is the most complex surface to maintain. “I have played on better courts.”
Djokovic needed treatment on his right shoulder after the fifth game of the third set and a medical timeout at 4-3 to treat the same problem.
He had already summoned the doctor after just three games of the opening set.
“We’ll see on the shoulder. It is something which I have been dragging back and forth for a while but I am still managing to play,” he added.
Djokovic will face the Czech Republic’s Tomas Berdych today for a semi-final spot, boasting a 25-2 career record over the 2010 Wimbledon runner-up.
Berdych will have had a day more to rest up for the match as Djokovic and Mannarino were scheduled to have played their last-16 match on Monday.
However, their tie was pushed back to yesterday after Gilles Muller and Rafael Nadal played out a marathon fourth round match which lasted a shade under five hours.
Djokovic and Mannarino were first up under the Centre Court roof as rain fell on the courts.
“It was a long day yesterday for both of us waiting for an entire day. It is what it is. We got on the court today and we could play under the roof,” said Djokovic.
In the women’s singles, Garbine Muguruza powered into her second Wimbledon semi-final in the last three years with an emphatic 6-3, 6-4 win over Russian seventh seed Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Since winning her maiden Grand Slam title at the French Open last year, Muguruza has struggled to return to the top and this is her first major semi-final since that Roland Garros triumph.
Muguruza will face Coco Vandeweghe or Magdalena Rybarikova tomorrow for a place in Saturday’s final.
“I played good. I’m trying not to think a lot, just go for it and play my game. I’m happy it worked out,” Muguruza said.
“It seems far away since I last made the final here. I’m a completely different player.
Venus Williams handed out another lesson to one of Wimbledon’s young upstarts when she beat Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 7-5 yesterday to become the oldest women’s semi-finalist for 23 years.
The five-time champion, who turned 37 last month, tamed the big-hitting Latvian with a rock-solid performance under the Centre Court roof, winning with something to spare.
Williams, who had already disposed of a 21-year-old and two teenagers en route to her 38th Grand Slam quarter-final, barely flinched against the 20-year-old French Open champion whose magnificent 11-match winning run in majors came to an end. – Agencies