Gauff beats Pegula; Muchova shocks Osaka
London: Defending champion Jannik Sinner remained on course for a second successive Wimbledon title by storming into the semifinals with a straight-sets victory over Jan-Lennard Struff at the All-England Lawn Tennis Club in London on Tuesday.
World No.1 Sinner suppressed the dangerous challenge of Struff 7-5, 7-6(4), 6-3 to reach the 10th Grand Slam semifinal of his career.
Struff, the 36-year-old German, is ranked No.74, but his ranking belies his abilities on a grass court. He possesses a huge serve and is endowed with the willingness to come forward with a positive and aggressive approach to every point. He had reached his first major quarterfinal at the age of 36, the oldest man to do so, and gave his best in Tuesday's match.
But on Tuesday, there was no stopping Sinner, who may not have produced his most dazzling tennis against Struff but still proved too strong for the German and cruised into his third semifinal at Wimbledon.
Barring a spell in the second set when the champion appeared a little hesitant, Sinner never looked to be in any trouble. Not even the mid-afternoon heat could bother him. It had been a good day.
After dropping the opening set and falling an early break behind in the second, Struff raised his aggression further, using his heavy forehand and well-timed ventures to the net to unsettle Sinner. The World No. 74 responded immediately with a break back and continued to apply that same pressure throughout the set, eventually earning a set point at 5-4, 30/40.
Yet Sinner showcased his composure in the biggest moments, escaping danger with three emphatic deliveries: two unreturned serves, either side of an ace. From there, the top seed continued to back up his outstanding serving with relentless baseline consistency, firing his way through the second-set tie-break before maintaining his control for the remainder of the two-hour, 35-minute match.
“The second set could have ended in a different way,” Sinner said in his on-court interview. “Tie-breaks are always 50/50. If you are one set all or two sets up, it’s a big [difference]. So in the third set, I was a little bit more relaxed, for sure.
“His percentage of first serves dropped a little bit, which helped me feel slightly more comfortable. I’m very happy to finish in three sets, but he’s a very tough player to play against. So I’m pleased.”
Sinner had been riding a 30-match winning streak — a run that included completing the Career Golden Masters — before his shock second-round defeat to Juan Manuel Cerundolo at Roland Garros, but he has responded impressively upon his return to action at Wimbledon.
Coco Gauff fought back from a set down to reach the semifinals for the first time after beating former doubles partner Jessica Pegula 4-6 6-3 6-3 in an all-American Centre Court clash on Tuesday.
The seventh seed and two-time Grand Slam winner, now the highest ranked player left in the women’s singles draw, was on the back foot from the start against a fourth-seeded opponent who broke her in the opening game.
Gauff got things under control in the second set, although she still had to survive two break points in the opening game, and halved the number of unforced errors as she fought back to break Pegula for 5-3 and hold serve.
The former US and French Open winner led the ?match for the first time when she broke Pegula to go 2-1 up in the final set. Her opponent broke back to 3-3 but Gauff replied with another immediate break for 4-3, held serve and then Pegula fell at the first match point.
Karolina Muchova overcame four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka of Japan 7-6(4), 6-4 in an absorbing contest of athleticism, shot variety and tight margins on Tuesday to set up a Wimbledon semifinal against American Coco Gauff.
The 29-year-old Czech, seeking a first Grand Slam title, proved the steadier player on a sizzling Court One, producing 21 unforced errors to Osaka’s 42 while the pair sent down 24 winners apiece.
Not afraid to come to the net and volley, Muchova took the first set tiebreak with a forehand winner on her third set point.
Osaka, 28 and seeded 14th, had downed top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the fourth round. But consistency deserted her as she served two double faults alongside two aces in the ninth game of the second set and missed a drive volley to drop her serve.
Tenth seed Muchova served out the set, finishing with an ace, to reach her first Wimbledon semifinal.
Alexander Zverev worked a longer shift than he would have hoped for in fierce heat as he returned to Centre Court on Tuesday to complete his fourth-round win over Jiri Lehecka and reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the first time.
The German second seed had gone to bed the previous evening tantalisingly close to breaking new ground at Wimbledon, leading by two sets and 3-3 in the third when Wimbledon’s strict 11 p.m. curfew halted his progress.
On the resumption, a listless-looking Zverev lost 12 of the first 13 points to drop the third set but managed to re-focus to win 6-4 7-5 3-6 7-6(6).
Zverev double-faulted on a second match point in the tiebreaker but was spared further overtime as 13th seed Lehecka netted a backhand. Agencies
Also Read: Jannik Sinner topples Shintaro Mochizuki for fifth consecutive Wimbledon quarterfinals