PREVIEW (via Reuters)
The Wimbledon women’s singles semifinal take centre stage at the All England Club on Thursday. Former champion Elena Rybakina is the highest seed in the women’s semifinals where the number four will take on former French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova. In the other semifinal, in-form Italian Jasmine Paolini, the seventh seed, faces experienced Croatian Donna Vekic.
Paolini vs Vekic
Until arriving in Eastbourne this year, the 28-year-old Paolini had never won a Tour-level match on grass. Now she has become the first Italian woman to reach the semifinals of the women’s singles at Wimbledon.
The story could even better too as the ever-smiling French Open runner-up is playing unseeded Vekic in the last four. She demolished American Emma Navarro in the quarterfinal on Tuesday and will be full of confidence when she walks out on to Centre Court on Thursday.
World number 37 Vekic will be a tough obstacle, though.
Also aged 28, her career has been a rollercoaster with injuries ever-present and she almost pulled out of the French Open feeling that she needed a break from the sport.
Rybakina vs Krejcikova
As a succession of top seeds perished at this year’s soggy Wimbledon the one reliable factor in all the chaos was Kazakhstan’s 2022 champion Rybakina.
Barring a blip in the second round when she dropped a set against Germany’s Laura Siegemund, the Moscow-born 25-year-old has been imperious, winning four matches in straight sets.
Underpinning her powerful game is one of the best first serves in women’s tennis, a weapon that has delivered a tournament-leading 31 aces so far and wins her a point 82% of the time she lands it in the box.
Krejcikova, unusual in that she excels in both singles and doubles, will certainly not be daunted by facing Rybakina.
The Czech has won both their previous meetings although they are yet to face each other on grass.
Here’s the full list of women’s semifinal results for day 11 of Wimbledon 2024:
Centre Court
Donna Vekic (CRO) vs [7] Jasmine Paolini (ITA) - 6PM IST
[31] Barbora Krejcikova (CZE) vs [4] Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
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