
Wimbledon briefing: Day 10 recap as Sinner and Djokovic set up clash and order of play for women's semi-finals
Here, we look back at Wednesday's action and preview day 11 of the Championships.
Djokovic sets up Sinner clash
Novak Djokovic reached a men's record 14th Wimbledon semi-final by overcoming the spirited challenge of Flavio Cobolli 6-7 (6) 6-2 7-5 6-4.
He will next face world number one Jannik Sinner, who shrugged off any concerns about his injured elbow as he dismantled Ben Shelton in straight sets.
Carlos Alcaraz is the only player to beat Djokovic at Wimbledon since 2017 but, while Sinner has lost both their previous meetings at the All England Club, the Italian has already knocked the 24-time grand slam champion out of the Australian Open and French Open this season.
Swiatek's grass breakthrough
Iga Swiatek smashed through her grass ceiling as she made the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time.
The 24-year-old, a four-time French Open champion, swept aside Liudmila Samsonova 6-2 7-5 on Court One to complete the set of grand slam last-four appearances.
She will next face 2021 Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, who ended the teenage dreams of Mirra Andreeva to reach her first Wimbledon semi-final in her first year back in SW19 following the birth of daughter Bella in April 2024.
Brit watch
Britain's Joe Salisbury will bid for a seventh grand slam title when he teams up with Brazilian Luisa Stefani in the mixed doubles final on Thursday.
The pair, who will take on Sem Verbeek of the Netherlands and Czech Katerina Siniakova, only entered at the last minute after Salisbury's original partner, Jodie Burrage, suffered an ankle injury.
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Salisbury has trophies from all the other slams across men's and mixed doubles but is yet to lift silverware at Wimbledon.
'It would be amazing,' he said. 'For me it's the main one. To win Wimbledon is the biggest tournament.'
Match of the day
Aryna Sabalenka is one win away from reaching the final of a fourth straight grand slam but her first at Wimbledon.
The three-time major winner must overcome a player who holds a winning record against her in Thursday's first semi-final.
Amanda Anisimova has been victorious in five of their eight meetings, but has never reached the final of a grand slam.
The big-hitting duo are sure to provide plenty of thrills in the first match on Centre Court.
Order of play
Centre Court (from 1.30pm) Aryna Sabalenka (1) v Amanda Anisimova (13) Iga Swiatek (8) v Belinda Bencic Salisbury/Stefani v Verbeek/Siniakova (mixed doubles final)
Court One (from 1pm) Arevalo/Pavic (1) v Hijikata/Pel (men's doubles) Cash/Glasspool (5) v Granollers/Zeballos (4) (men's doubles) Hewett/Reid v Caverzaschi/Oda (wheelchair doubles)
Weather watch
Sunny, with highs of 32C, according to the UK Met Office.
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Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Poster boy and the son of a legend: Five Wallabies to watch against the Lions
Joseph Suaalii The poster boy for Australian rugby union following his switch from the Rugby League last year and still only 21, the former Sydney Rooster's return to the code he played as a kid was an instant success on the Wallabies' Northern Hemisphere tour last November, and his aerial prowess on restarts caused England all sorts of problems. The outside centre brings a serious physical threat to the midfield battle and in tandem with an equally rock solid and robust number 12 in Len Ikitau, this combination could be a real thorn in the Lions' side. Also look out for any rekindling of the running verbal battle Suaalii entered into with the chirpy Sione Tuipulotu when Australia met Scotland at Murrayfield last autumn. Tom Lynagh Joe Schmidt had a decision to make at fly-half after his first-choice 10 Noah Lolesio got crocked with a neck injury against Fiji a fortnight ago, ruling him out of the Lions series. The Wallabies head coach called up veteran Crusaders playmaker James O'Connor, who faced the Lions as a starting 10 in 2013, but his real choice was who to start against the Lions, Lynagh of the Queensland Reds or Western Force fly-half/full-back Ben Donaldson. According to Australian media reports, it is Lynagh, four years younger and less experienced than the 26-year-old Donaldson, who has got the nod. It is a big call from Schmidt. Lynagh will be making his first Test start at Suncorp Stadium this Saturday when he wins his fourth Wallabies cap and as a son of legendary Aussie fly-half Michael Lynagh, the scrutiny on the Italian-born, English-educated 22-year-old will only intensify in the international arena. Schmidt clearly thinks Lynagh junior can handle the pressure and a swarming Lions defence. Will Skelton The giant lock has been causing problems for Irish provinces in the Champions Cup knockout stages, first for Saracens against Munster and more recently against Leinster under Ronan O'Gara's direction at La Rochelle with whom he has won two European titles. Skelton also won two Champions Cups and two English Premiership titles at Saracens in partnership with Lions captain Maro Itoje, who this week described his former team-mate as 'a world class operator' and 'a big man to say the least'. At 6ft 6ins and more than 21 stone, Skelton can be a weapon in the loose and scrummaging behind the Australian front row and Wallabies supporters will be hoping Joe Schmidt's optimism that his lock's calf is ready to go for the second test is well founded. Fraser McReight Australia's openside flanker enhanced his reputation with some stellar performances against the Lions nations on tour in the Northern Hemisphere last November, not least against Andy Farrell's Ireland at Aviva Stadium in a tight game the Wallabies could easily have won. The 26-year-old Brisbane native will be out to rule his home turf this Saturday and Ireland and Lions No.8 Jack Conan is well aware of his breakdown poaching threat. 'We know he is going to be a massive threat and Australia's back row is unbelievable. It's one of the best in the world. 'He was great against us in November and we know the challenge and the threat he poses. So, we're going to have make sure we're all over the ruck. You saw the Brumbies and the Waratahs the other week, they're going really hard at the ruck. 'Every team does it but they got a good amount of joy out of us in the breakdown so we know we need to be squeaky clean in that area come the weekend.' Rob Valetini Another reason why the Wallabies back row is such a formidable outfit. When fit, Valetini will be tasked with backing up his status as Australia's primary ball carrier, a powerhouse player who not only gets over the gainline more than any other Wallaby but also makes the most post-contact metres.


Irish Examiner
7 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Tommy Martin: Club World Cup? Even if the players didn't need a break, we certainly do
Bloody hell, football, give us a break. This is, after all, possibly one of the greatest weeks of sport-that-is-not-football in history. It is the week of a properly historic All-Ireland hurling final, the first ever between Cork and Tipperary. What a wonderful thing! On Saturday it's the Lions first test against the Wallabies — THE LIONS! GRRR! TRADITION! PASSION! HEDGE FUNDS! Yes, it is a Leinster & District XV according to some, but still, come on — THE LIONS! You have The Open back on Irish soil at Royal Portrush. Northern Ireland welcomes Rory, Shane, Scottie, Bryson and all the lads, though thankfully not with one of its famous bonfires. There's Wimbledon to digest, and the All-Ireland football semi-finals and Katie Taylor winning her headline trilogy fight with Amanda Serrano at Madison Square Garden. An epic conclusion to the cricket test between England and India at Lord's. An Irishman in the yellow jersey in the Tour de France for God's sake! And still, football barges its way in. I mean, come on: Donald Trump doing a David May while Chelsea captain Reece James lifts the FIFA Club World Cup trophy — which looks like a cross between a precision astronomical instrument and Liberace's bedside lamp — and Cole Palmer staring balefully at the world's most powerful man as if he has skipped him in the queue for a sausage roll at the deli counter. Just out of shot, FIFA president Gianni Infantino is beckoning Trump to get off stage like a mithered teacher trying to direct a preschool Nativity play. As tableaux go, it's a modern Caravaggio. It's as if someone asked ChatGPT to create an image that summed up our mad old world. Even in such a momentous week in sport-that-is-not-football, here comes football, pulling focus, like a spoiled child demanding parental attention by doing a poop in the middle of the kitchen floor. Not that I actually saw it live, mind you. I managed to not watch pretty much the whole FIFA Club World Cup, due to a host of complex reasons, but mainly down to being too lazy to figure out how to put it on my TV. I guess that DAZN, the streamer that broadcast the tournament, is in there somewhere. I'm pretty sure I watched a Katie Taylor fight on it one time. And all I would have to do is find the other remote and toggle on to the homescreen and then find the app and possibly remember a password to log in and away we'd go. But sorry Gianni, I know the tournament was 'the most successful club competition in the world' and marked the beginning of 'the golden era of club football' — according to, well, you — but what can I say, I decided to sit this one out. And yet, here it is, barging its way front and centre in the midsummer sporting agenda, elbowing top golfers and beefy British and Irish Lions out of the way in all its silly, gaudy, attention-seeking glory. Yes football, we see you, we hear you, but mummy is busy right now, ok darling? Lamine Yamal. File picture: Emilio Morenatti/AP Actually, hold that thought. For arresting football-related images — possibly quite literally — we switch to Lamine Yamal's 18th birthday party, which has gotten the Barcelona star in hot water over reports that he hired a troupe of people with dwarfism to provide the entertainment. Spain's Ministry of Social Rights has asked the state prosecutor to investigate after the Spanish Association of People with Achondroplasia and Other Skeletal Dyplasias (ADEE) filed a complaint, describing the incident as 'unacceptable in the 21st century'. To add to the whole Wolf of Wall Street vibe, it was reported that a Spanish model claimed she was approached to attend the party and recruit 12 other women to join her, as long as they had a specific breast size and blonde hair, with each woman allegedly to be paid €17,500 for their trouble. Obviously, Yamal is an idiot, but then most kids his age are and especially if you hand them millions and millions to spend at their whim. In my experience, if you give a teenager any amount of money they will spend it unwisely. From cans of Monster and fruity vapes, it's a short hop to dancing dwarves and busty blondes. To be honest, the whole thing is actually an advertisement for the FIFA Club World Cup, in a devil making work for idle hands kind of way. Had Barcelona been busy traipsing around the USA trying to play football in face-melting heat, then Yamal would never have had time to reach the dubious section of the party planner's catalogue. As it is, he's gone from Ballon D'Or-chasing boy wonder to modern day Caligula just by being given some time off. Player burnout be damned, Gianni was right — keep flogging 'em, it's for their own good. Of course, both stories kind of illustrate why we need a break from football. At this level, in its modern form, it really is too much. It's such a pungent stew of ego and money and geopolitics and celebrity and utter nonsense, all filtered through the brainrot freeway of the social media driven news cycle, that not to give your jaded cranium a little two-month summer rest can't be good for you. You don't even have to take a full break from football. International tournaments like the women's Euros and League of Ireland are permitted in this metaphorical mind detox. They are hearty and full of fibre and crucially are not things that Fabrizio Romano is interested in telling you about. In truth, this is probably why most of us decided not to figure out how to watch the FIFA Club World Cup (which, to be fair, aside from half-empty stadiums, terrifying prevailing weather conditions and that awful Robbie Williams song, most observers accept wasn't too bad, given how it threw up a few decent storylines and shared the love beyond club football's European power base a bit). Yes, we echoed the concerns of bodies like FIFPRO about exploitation of players, acknowledged how the tournament was a conduit for Saudi Arabia to further spread its tentacles of influence, recognised Infantino for the nabob of narcissism that he is, and recoiled at the incessant sucking up to the White House. But it wasn't our principles — mostly we just needed a break. For our own good. It's only four weeks till the Premier League and eight weeks till most of the same teams that were in the Club World Cup go again in the Champions League. We can do this. And in case you haven't heard, there's some decent sport-that-is-not-football on to see us through.


RTÉ News
13 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Cristiana Girelli grabs late second goal to send Italy past Norway and into semi-finals
Cristiana Girelli scored a 90th-minute winner as Italy beat Norway 2-1 in Geneva to book their spot in the semi-finals at the UEFA Women's European Championship. The Italians took the lead five minutes into the second half through Girelli's close-range finish and they had the ball in the net again three minutes later only for the goal to be ruled out for offside. Norway captain Ada Hegerberg then won a penalty but fired her spot kick wide for the second time at the tournament before levelling with a deft finish in the 66th minute to silence the raucous Italian fans in the crowd. With the game heading for extra time, Girelli ghosted in at the far post to head home her second of the game and send Italy into the last four for the first time since 1997. They will next face either reigning champions England or Sweden, who meet in Zurich on Thursday. 🇳🇴 1-2 🇮🇹 GOAL ITALY - Drama in the closing minutes as Girelli restores the Italian lead #rtesport #WEURO2025 📺 Watch live on @rte2 and @RTEplayer — RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) July 16, 2025