Center Court, from 2:30 p.m. in France:
Svitolina (Ukr) – Vondrousova (RTC)
Jabeur (Tun/6) – Sabalenka (Blr/2)
Svitolina-Vondrousova: the surprise semi-final
After knocking down Venus Williams (1st round), Sofia Kenin (3rd round), Victoria Azarenka (round of 16) and Swiatek (quarters), Svitolina (76th in the world) will be favorite against Vondrousova (42nd) in a semi-final which will not was not expected on the program. The Ukrainian, who signed her return to competition in April, after giving birth to her first child last October, finds the last four in London for the first time since 2019. Vondrousova, 24, finalist of Roland-Garros in 2019, but who had never done better at Wimbledon than a second round (2021), could play tricks on him this Friday.
After taking her revenge against Elena Rybakina, the sixth world Ons Jabeur, finalist of the last edition will try Thursday to defeat Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka (2nd), who had beaten her in the semi-finals in 2021. Jabeur played two finals of Grand Slam (Wimbledon and US Open 2022), but has not yet been crowned. First player from the Arab world to have reached the quarter-finals of a Major (Australia 2020), and Wimbledon (2021), she could become the second woman from the African continent to play three Grand Slam finals after South African Amanda. Coezter. It will already be necessary to overcome the obstacle Sabalenka, present in the last four of the last four Majors. After the eliminations of Iga Swiatek and Rybakina, she is the favorite of the last four London.
In case of victory this Thursday against Ons Jabeur, Aryna Sabalenka will become world number one in the ranking next Monday.
“We trained together here before the tournament started. I thought she played amazing tennis. And she knew how to maintain in competition the level she had in training. So it’s not like I didn’t expect to face him,” Sabalenka said of his opponent Ons Jabeur.
There are no more French players on display this Thursday for the junior tournament. Antoine Ghibaudo and Arthur Gea lost in the 3rd round on Wednesday…
Queen Elizabeth II was patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. She didn’t usually go to the Temple of Tennis. During her long reign of seventy years, she was spotted only four times in the spans of the British Grand Slam. It must be said that Queen was not a fan of tennis and the little yellow ball. “Tennis is not on the Queen’s list of favorite sports,” wrote Brian Hoey, Elizabeth II’s biographer, in his book Royalty Revealed: A Majestic Miscellany.
