logo
Alcaraz routs Norrie to reach Wimbledon semis

Alcaraz routs Norrie to reach Wimbledon semis

Express Tribune2 days ago
Carlos Alcaraz swept into the Wimbledon semi-finals for a third successive year as the defending champion demolished Britain's Cameron Norrie in a Centre Court masterclass on Tuesday.
Alcaraz needed just 99 minutes to thrash Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 in his most commanding performance in this year's tournament.
The Spanish second seed dropped four sets in a series of scrappy displays during his run to the last eight.
But Alcaraz was back to his imperious best in the quarter-finals, blasting 39 winners to set up a last four clash with American fifth seed Taylor Fritz.
"To be able to play another semi-final here at Wimbledon is super-special," Alcaraz said.
It's going to be great. I'm really happy with the way I played against a really difficult player," he added.
With world number one Jannik Sinner struggling with an elbow injury after trailing by two sets in the fourth round before his opponent Grigor Dimitrov was forced to retire, Alcaraz looks like the title favourite heading into the closing stages of the tournament.
Alcaraz is on a career-best 23 match winning run since losing to Holger Rune in the Barcelona final in April – a superb streak which has brought him titles at the French Open, the Rome Masters and Monte Carlo.
The Spaniard, who vanquished Novak Djokovic in the last two Wimbledon finals, has won 34 of his 37 Tour-level matches on grass, while his last defeat at the All England Club came against Sinner in the fourth round in 2022.
"Taylor is playing great. The grass season has been really successful for him so far with two titles and a semi-final here," Alcaraz said.
"I have to be ready for that battle. I will try to play the same level as today.
"I will rest up a little bit and enjoy the time with my team and my family. For sure I'm going to play some golf to switch off my mind a little bit," he added.
Alcaraz is only the second Spanish man to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals on at least three occasions after Rafael Nadal, who made eight appearances in the last four.
The five-time Grand Slam champion is aiming to become the fifth man to win Wimbledon in three consecutive years in the Open era afer Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Djokovic.
Alcaraz, who will be making his eighth Grand Slam semi-final appearance, is also bidding to become the second-youngest player in the Open era, after Borg, to win six major men's singles titles. Alcaraz wasted little time asserting his dominance with breaks in the third and fifth games of a one-sided opening set.
The 22-year-old was equally commanding in the second set as the world number 61 struggled to stem the tide.
Alcaraz was in total control and the third set followed the same pattern, with the decisive break coming in the sixth game as he sealed his victory in ruthless fashion.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Sinner stuns Djokovic to reach first Wimbledon final
Sinner stuns Djokovic to reach first Wimbledon final

Express Tribune

timean hour ago

  • Express Tribune

Sinner stuns Djokovic to reach first Wimbledon final

Top seed Jannik Sinner ensured Novak Djokovic will be absent from a Wimbledon men's singles final for the first time in eight years after handing the Serbian great a brutal Centre Court battering on Friday. Italian Sinner lost both his previous Wimbledon duels with Djokovic but undoubtedly turned the tables as his power and precision proved too much for the seven-time champion, who, at 38, looked every bit his age in a humbling 6-3 6-3 6-4 loss. In his first Wimbledon final, the 23-year-old Sinner will face Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in a tantalising re-match of their recent French Open humdinger, which the Italian lost after battling for more than five hours, squandering three championship points. Alcaraz stayed on course for a Wimbledon three-peat with a 6-4 5-7 6-3 7-6(6) defeat of Taylor Fritz. 'I don't know what to expect, you saw the last final and you never know,' Sinner, just the third Italian to reach a Wimbledon singles final and hoping to become his country's first champion at the grasscourt slam, said on court. 'It's a huge honour to share the court with Carlos, we try to push ourselves to the limit. I love watching him. Hopefully it will be a good match like the last one, I don't know about better, I don't think that's possible.' Djokovic, who arrived in London bidding to equal Roger Federer's men's record eight Wimbledon titles and claim an unprecedented 25th major trophy, had not lost an All England Club semi-final since the Swiss got the better of him in 2012. But his 52nd Grand Slam semi-final proved a bridge too far as Sinner repeated his victory at the same stage of Roland Garros to confirm that a new order has now firmly established itself at the top of men's tennis. Djokovic has often looked superhuman on Wimbledon's most historic stage, but on Friday, Father Time chased him down as he looked defenceless against a sublime Sinner who dropped only six points on serve in the first two sets. He briefly stemmed the tide in the third set to move 3-0 ahead, but it proved an illusion as Sinner, bidding to add the Wimbledon title to his two Australian and one U.S. Open crowns, nipped any hope of a famous comeback in the bud. Djokovic appeared to struggle physically in the closing stages after needing treatment and Sinner wasted no time in putting the old warrior out of his misery in less than two hours to complete his set of Grand Slam finals. Sinner joined in the applause as Djokovic left Centre Court, giving a thumbs up to a cheering crowd who may have thought they had witnessed his last Wimbledon hurrah. Djokovic, who has reached the semi-finals of every Grand Slam this year -- retiring against Alexander Zverev in Australia and losing to Sinner in Paris and now here -- later said he plans to be back, but admitted the wear and tear of battling the new generation takes its toll. 'When I'm fresh and fit, I can still play really good tennis, but playing best of five, particularly this year, has been a struggle physically,' he told reporters. "The longer it goes, the worse the condition gets. I reached the semis of every slam this year but had to play these guys who are fit and young and I feel like I go into the matches with the tank half empty. 'It's just one of those things I need to embrace and deal with the reality. The day's second semi-final had been given top billing, but it proved an anti-climax for the fans, many of whom chanted "Nole Nole" as the match sped away from Djokovic. Sinner's net-skimming, line-hugging ground strokes -- the sort that come straight from the Djokovic textbook -- were suffocating on a boiling Centre Court, while his serving was untouchable. With 41 minutes on the clock, Sinner was a set and a break ahead and in complete control. Djokovic, who slipped on match point of his quarter-final win against Flavio Cobolli and missed his training session on Thursday, required treatment at the end of the second set. Just for a while, it seemed Sinner's fire had been doused as he lost concentration, but this time there was to be no Djokovic fightback as his resistance faded quickly. Alcaraz faced a more troublesome afternoon taming the big-serving Fritz in fierce heat and had to save two set points in the fourth-set tiebreaker to avoid being dragged into a decider. Looking ahead to the final, he said: 'Just going to be a great day, a great final. I'm just excited about it.'

Lyles back, ready to 'run fast', as Tebogo lurks
Lyles back, ready to 'run fast', as Tebogo lurks

Express Tribune

time7 hours ago

  • Express Tribune

Lyles back, ready to 'run fast', as Tebogo lurks

Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles makes his European season debut in the 200m at the Diamond League meet in Monaco on Friday, back from a tendon injury with a body he says is "ready to run fast". The American's much-anticipated return to elite competition comes at a timely moment as athletes continue to fine-tune their form ahead of September's world championships in Tokyo. Lyles will be up against Letsile Tebogo, the Botswanan who won Olympic 200m gold in Paris in a race when a Covid-hit Lyles came away with bronze. "Everything's been telling me like my body's ready to run fast," Lyles said Thursday after recovering from an injury caused by what he said was a "freak accident", without disclosing more details. "I've been waiting quite a while. I had an inflamed tendon and it prevented me from actually being able to jog or run. I couldn't put much pressure on it. "I could walk, but other than walking, I couldn't really do much." It was Lyles' first proper injury since one he sustained in his first year as a professional in 2017. Lyles, who will race over 100m in London next week, added: "That was kind of disappointing just watching everybody race. But luckily I have the bye for the world championships and it still sets my season up to be really good." Last season, the 27-year-old said, had made it tough to get back on the track in training after all the add-ons of becoming an Olympic 100m champion. "I remember thinking 'Oh, this is too early'. I want to go out, I want to enjoy the fact that I won the medal and go to events and stuff like that. "I ended up having to take a vacation because I wasn't able to in my off season and go and get away from track in the beginning of April because I was just so burnt out." India's Chopra wants coach Zelezny's big-stage mindset India's Olympic javelin gold medallist Neeraj Chopra said on Friday he hoped his coaching switch continues to pay off as he aims to retain his world title. Chopra joined Czech javelin legend Jan Zelezny's coaching group ahead of the 2025 season and last weekend won the inaugural edition of the Neeraj Chopra Classic in Bengaluru, stretching his streak of top-two finishes to 25 events. "He always performed in big tournaments and I am trying to pick his mindset of a big-stage performer and that will help me," Chopra told reporters on Friday at an event organised by one of his sponsors near New Delhi. "The main target this year is the Tokyo World Championships and we are working towards it." The World Championships are in September. The 27-year-old Chopra won an Olympic gold in Tokyo in 2021 and silver in Paris last year. He took the last world title in Budapest in 2023. Zelezny won four Olympic medals, three of them gold, and three world titles in a career that lasted more than 20 years.

Alcaraz in 3rd successive Wimbledon final
Alcaraz in 3rd successive Wimbledon final

Express Tribune

time8 hours ago

  • Express Tribune

Alcaraz in 3rd successive Wimbledon final

Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz reached his third successive Wimbledon final on Friday, battling to a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (8/6) win against American fifth seed Taylor Fritz. With Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio watching from the stands, Alcaraz survived a titanic clash lasting two hours and 49 minutes in searing temperatures on Centre Court. As the mercury rose close to 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit), play was interrupted by several fans taken ill, but Alcaraz kept his cool to subdue the big-serving Fritz with his sublime returns and immaculate serving of his own. The 22-year-old will play seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic or world number one Jannik Sinner in Sunday's final. Alcaraz has beaten Djokovic in the past two Wimbledon finals and holds an 8-4 edge over Sinner in their 12 meetings. "It was a really difficult match, as always when I play against Taylor. Even tougher with the conditions. It was really hot today," Alcaraz said. "I dealt with the nerves. Playing here in a semi-final is not easy. I'm really proud with the way I stayed calm and thought clearly. I'm pleased about my level." Back to his best after an inconsistent start to the tournament, the world number two looks in the mood to extend his reign at the All England Club. The five-time Grand Slam champion is on a career-best 24-match winning streak since losing to Holger Rune in the Barcelona final in April. That blistering run has brought him an epic French Open final triumph against Sinner and titles in Rome, Monte Carlo and at Queen's Club. He has won 35 of his 38 matches on grass, a golden spell including 20 successive victories at Wimbledon since losing to Sinner in the fourth round in 2022. "I'm not thinking about the winning streak or the results at all," he said. "This is my dream, stepping on these beautiful courts and playing tennis in the most beautiful tournament in the world. "I just want to enjoy this moment, that I've got to a third final in a row. I will have time to think about Sunday." Alcaraz is one win away from becoming the fifth man in the Open era to clinch three consecutive Wimbledon titles after Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Djokovic. He can also become the second-youngest player in the Open era to win six men's Grand Slam titles after Borg reached that mark at Wimbledon in 1978 aged 22. Fritz fell short in his bid to reach a second Grand Slam final. The 27-year-old, a US Open runner-up last year, made a gutsy effort, but Alcaraz had won both their previous meetings and he wasted no time seizing control again. Although grass-court specialist Fritz had slammed 95 aces on route to his first Wimbledon semi-final, Alcaraz's returning prowess neutralised that weapon to secure a break in the first game of the match. Alcaraz needed his eye checked midway through the set, but there was no loss of focus from the Spaniard as he held serve to take the opener. Having dropped just four of 24 points on his serve in the first set, the Spaniard found himself under fire in the second. Fritz pounced on a rare sloppy game from Alcaraz to take the set when the Spaniard produced an ill-timed double-fault and two costly unforced errors. The nerveless Alcaraz was unfazed by that threat and quickly regained the momentum, running Fritz ragged with a deft drop-shot followed by a perfect lob to break in the third game of the third set. With Alcaraz's serve virtually flawless, he added another break for good measure to secure a two sets to one lead. In a dramatic fourth set tie-break, Fritz went from 4-1 down to 6-4 up, only for Alcaraz to save both set points. Alcaraz scented victory and one last flurry of piercing ground-strokes secured his latest final berth.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store