
Carlos Alcaraz's Wimbledon win streak reaches 18. Sabalenka gets to another Slam quarterfinal
LONDON (AP) — Carlos Alcaraz's latest up-and-down Wimbledon performance began with a dropped set. Later Sunday, he was in danger of getting broken to fall further behind in the third. And then, as he so often does, Alcaraz seized the moment, produced some magic and moved closer to a third consecutive title at the All England Club.
Alcaraz stretched his winning streak in the grass-court Grand Slam tournament to 18 matches — and his current unbeaten run across all events to 22 — by coming back to beat No. 14 seed Andrey Rublev 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 at Centre Court to return to the quarterfinals.
In this fortnight's first matchup between two men ranked in the top 20, No. 2 Alcaraz brought out his best while down 3-2 in the third set. First, he needed to fend off a break chance for Rublev, doing so with a forehand passing winner.
After eventually holding to 3-all, Alcaraz earned his own break opportunity and didn't let Rublev escape. On an eight-stroke exchange, Alcaraz sprinted from one corner of the court to the other and, with a stomp of his right foot and a bit of a slide, he flicked a cross-court forehand winner.
Oh, did he relish that one. Alcaraz spread his arms wide, pointed to his right ear and basked in the crowd's loud adulation, the noise bouncing off the underside of the stadium's closed roof.
Rublev sat in his sideline chair, looked up at his guest box and made a sarcastic 'OK' hand signal. Just 10 minutes later, that set belong to Alcaraz, who will face 2022 semifinalist Cam Norrie — the last British player in singles — on Tuesday for a berth in the final four.
'I always said that it's just about belief in yourself. It doesn't matter that you are one-set-to-love down,' Alcaraz said. 'Tennis is a sport that can change in just one point. One point can change the match completely, turn around everything.'
The 61st-ranked Norrie, who played college tennis at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas, advanced with a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (7), 6-7 (5), 6-3 win over qualifier Nicolas Jarry, who hit 46 aces. Norrie had a chance to close things out much earlier than he did but failed to convert a match point while ahead 6-5 in the third-set tiebreaker.
The other men's quarterfinal Tuesday will be No. 5 Taylor Fritz vs. No. 17 Karen Khachanov. Fritz, last year's U.S. Open runner-up, had a short day because his opponent, Jordan Thompson, quit after about 40 minutes with back and leg injuries that he'd been dealing with throughout the tournament.
Alcaraz is just 22 and already owns five Grand Slam trophies, the latest arriving in June at the French Open. He hasn't lost a match anywhere since April 20 against Holger Rune in the final at Barcelona.
There have been lapses, of course, including when Alcaraz fell behind by two sets against No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the final at Roland-Garros. Or when the Spaniard lost four points in a row after going up 5-3 in the opening tiebreaker against Rublev.
He hasn't been as close-to-perfect as others over the past week: Sinner, No. 10 Ben Shelton and No. 22 Flavio Cobolli haven't dropped a set heading into their fourth-round contests.
So, sure, Alcaraz has ceded five sets already, but all that matters is that he hasn't lost a match. What else happened at Wimbledon on Sunday?
No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka reached the quarterfinals at her 11th consecutive Grand Slam tournament, defeating No. 24 Elise Mertens 6-4, 7-6 (4), and will play unseeded Laura Siegemund, the 37-year-old German who followed up her elimination of Australian Open champ Madison Keys by beating lucky loser Solana Sierra 6-3, 6-2. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova overcame a missed call late in the first set — when the electronic system accidentally was off — and beat Sonay Kartal 7-6 (3), 6-4 to return to the grass-court major's quarterfinals for the first time in nine years. Pavlyuchenkova's opponent Tuesday will be Amanda Anisimova or Linda Noskova. Who plays at the All England Club on Monday?
Monday's fourth-rounders include Novak Djokovic against No. 11 Alex de Minaur at 1:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET). They were supposed to face each other in last year's quarterfinals at Wimbledon, but de Minaur was forced to withdraw with a hip injury. That'll be followed at Centre Court by Mirra Andreeva vs. Emma Navarro, and then Sinner vs. No. 19 Grigor Dimitrov.
___
More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Hamilton Spectator
39 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Reds ace Hunter Greene reports tightness in his groin and won't start his rehab assignment yet
CINCINNATI (AP) — The Cincinnati Reds have delayed the start of a rehabilitation assignment for ace Hunter Greene due to tightness in his strained right groin. Manager Terry Francona said Monday before the Reds began a three-game series against Miami that Greene would undergo another MRI exam 'out of an abundance of caution.' Greene had been scheduled to pitch for Triple-A Louisville on Tuesday, but that was put on hold after the discomfort arose following a bullpen session on Sunday. The right-hander, who's on his second injured list stint because of the muscle strain, told reporters he was feeling strong before the setback but will take his status 'day by day.' After the injury first popped up during a start on May 7, Greene returned after the minimum 15-day stay on the IL and made three starts before being pulled early from the last one on June 3 . The Reds were aiming to have Greene back right after the All-Star break, but the timetable for his return is now less clear. Greene, who was the second overall pick in the 2017 draft, was well on his way before the injury to a second straight All-Star Game selection by posting a 2.72 ERA with 73 strikeouts in 59 2/3 innings over 11 starts. ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Legal challenge over Wimbledon expansion set to be heard at High Court
A campaign group's legal challenge against plans to almost triple the size of the Wimbledon tennis site is set to be heard at the High Court on Tuesday. Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) is challenging the decision by the Greater London Authority (GLA) to give the green light to the All England Club's proposal to build 39 new courts, including an 8,000-seat stadium, on the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club. Planning permission for the scheme was granted last year by Jules Pipe, London's deputy mayor for planning, who said that the proposals 'would facilitate very significant benefits' which 'clearly outweigh the harm'. Debbie Jevans, chair of the All England Club, said at the time that the proposals would deliver 27 acres of 'newly accessible parkland for the community', and would allow the qualifying tournament for Wimbledon – currently staged at Roehampton – to be held on-site. But campaigners say that Wimbledon Park, a Grade II*-listed heritage site, is subject to similar protections as the green belt or royal parks and that allowing development on the site would set a 'dangerous precedent'. SWP's lawyers are set to argue that the GLA's decision failed to take into account the implications of 'restrictive covenants' on the use of the land, and that the development would cause 'deliberate damage'. The GLA is defending the legal challenge at a two-day hearing before Mr Justice Saini, which is due to begin at 10.30am at the Royal Courts of Justice in London. The plans were first submitted to both Merton and Wandsworth Councils, with the park straddling the boroughs, in 2021, three years after the All England Club bought out golf club members with the intention of developing the land. After Merton Council approved the plans, but Wandsworth Council rejected them, the Mayor of London's office took charge of the application. Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan then recused himself from the process in 2023, having previously expressed public support for the development. The plans attracted opposition from Fleur Anderson, the Labour MP for Putney, and Richard Rees, who was previously the lead planner for the building of Wimbledon's Court One and the development of 'Henman Hill'. Ahead of Tuesday's hearing, Christopher Coombe, a director of SWP, said: 'If this decision by the GLA is upheld and the development goes ahead, the detrimental impacts on our environment and delicate ecosystem will be devastating. 'Our community has given massive support to the campaign over four years, desperate to stop the loss of open space intended for public recreation. 'This is not just in SW19; it's happening all over London. Once built, it is gone forever, and there is very little local trust in an organisation that prides itself on fair play, but then breaks its word. 'We all love the Wimbledon championships, but don't believe the proposal is really about protecting the future of the world's best tennis tournament. 'We will continue to press (the All England Club) to reconsider their fighting stance towards our community and to join us in finding a resolution that we can all get behind.' A spokesperson for the All England Club said: 'Our proposals will deliver one of the greatest sporting transformations for London since 2012. 'They are crucial to ensuring Wimbledon remains at the pinnacle of tennis, one of the world's best sporting events, and a global attraction for both London and the UK. 'On offer are substantial year-round benefits for our community and the delivery of significant social, economic, and environmental improvements. 'This includes more than 27 acres of new public parkland on what is currently inaccessible, private land. 'Our plans will increase the size of Wimbledon Park by a third and create spaces for people and nature to thrive. 'There will be a very significant increase in biodiversity across the site and our proposals are underpinned by more than 1,000 hours of ecological surveys, which are endorsed by the London Wildlife Trust. 'We have spoken to more than 10,000 people as part of our consultation events, and we know that the vast majority of people just want us to get on and deliver the many benefits on offer.' A GLA spokesperson said: 'The Mayor believes this scheme will bring a significant range of benefits, including environmental, economic, social and cultural benefits to the local area, the wider capital and the UK economy. 'It will create new jobs and green spaces and cement Wimbledon's reputation as the greatest tennis competition in the world. 'An application has been made for the court to determine this matter, and it is therefore inappropriate for the mayor to comment further at this stage.'


New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Two-time Stanley Cup champion Tyler Johnson announces retirement
After 13 years in the NHL, Tyler Johnson is hanging up his skates. The center, who won two Stanley Cups with the Lightning, announced his retirement on social media Monday. 'As a short kid from a small town, I saw my chances of playing in the NHL as very slim,' Johnson wrote in an Instagram post. 'But my family — my parents, Ken and Debbie, and my grandparents — believed in me when doubt clouded my mind. Their unwavering faith turned that dream into reality.' Advertisement An unheralded prospect, Johnson broke into the NHL with the Lightning in 2012 as an undrafted free agent from the WHL's Spokane Chiefs, his hometown team. Tyler Johnson announced his retirement from the NHL Monday. AP He stayed with Tampa Bay until 2021, and was a staple of the perennially-contending Lightning teams of the late 2010s and early 2020s. Advertisement He hoisted the cup with the team in 2020 and 2021. In his post, Johnson said he'll 'never forget' the call he received from then-Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman back in 2012, which he said 'changed his life.' 'I'd never set foot in Florida and knew nothing about Tampa, but a gut feeling said it was my path. That instinct led me home,' Johnson wrote. Tyler Johnson hoists the Stanley Cup after the Lightning won it in 2020. AP Advertisement After leaving Tampa Bay, Johnson went on to play three seasons with the Blackhawks and one with the Bruins, although he only played nine games with Boston. Johnson tallied a total of 193 goals and 240 assists in the 747 NHL games he played. His most productive season came with the Lightning in 2014-15, when he posted 29 goals and 43 assists and was named an All-Star, but he also eclipsed the 50-point mark in 2013-14 and in 2017-18. 'Now, after a lifetime devoted to hockey, I'm ready for what's next. I'm thrilled to focus on starting a family and exploring new paths,' Johnson wrote. 'This moment is bittersweet, but I leave the game with no regrets – only gratitude for the rinks, the teammates, the fans, and a sport that will always ignite my soul.'