Day 10 Recap

Quick Served: Day 10 — Then There Were 4 (Per Side)

Despite all those early upsets, four of the top six men’s seeds and three of the top 13 women’s seeds reached the semifinals.

If you’re looking for an in-depth tactical breakdown of Wednesday’s matches, Andy’s got you covered. He explains how each winner found their edge and what they need to do to reach the final.

Plus, he highlights one player who’s “perfected their craft,” and reminds us all that you can’t fool a radar gun.

Don’t miss Andy’s full Day 10 recap, a preview of the women’s semifinals, and his reaction to Bill Ackman playing in the Hall of Fame Challenger.

Iga Swiatek’s best season on grass continued with a quarterfinal win over No. 19 seed Liudmila Samsonova on Wednesday.

The No. 8 seed improved to 8-1 on the surface and reached her first semifinal at Wimbledon, becoming the fourth active player to reach the last four at each Slam.

Swiatek is two wins away from her first title at the All England Club, which would be her sixth major victory and she’d become the eighth woman in the Open Era to win a Slam on each surface. No other active player has achieved that feat.

Andy goes into great detail explaining how well Swiatek’s match strategy was executed and what she’s done to improve her game on grass.

Before thinking about all those accolades within reach, the 24-year-old will face Belinda Bencic in Thursday’s semifinal.

Bencic returns to the final four of a Slam for the first time in more than five years after she reached that stage at the 2019 US Open. It’s the fifth-longest gap between Grand Slam semifinal appearances in the Open Era. Also on that list is another 2025 Wimbledon semifinalist, but more on that later.

The 28-year-old from Switzerland outlasted No. 7 seed Mirra Andreeva in a pair of tiebreaks to reach her first Wimbledon semifinal, one year after she had to miss the tournament due to the birth of her daughter.

The former World No. 4 returned from maternity leave, started the year ranked No. 489, and won her first title as a mother in February. She’s now projected to return to the Top 20 in the rankings.

A new women’s champion will be crowned at Wimbledon this weekend. If it’s Bencic, she’d be the first mother to win the title at SW19 since 1980. Just three women have won major singles titles as mothers in the Open Era.

Listen to Andy share why Bencic’s story is another reminder that “tennis is so cool,” and what she’ll have to do to advance to the final.

As Bencic herself put it: “It doesn't end here."

The theme of Thursday’s semifinals may just be: Resurgence vs. Reign.

Bencic joins No. 13 seed Amanda Anisimova as players who ended more than five-year gaps between semifinal appearances in majors in the Open Era.

Anisimova reached the 2019 Roland-Garros semifinal as a 17-year-old. While Bencic missed time due to maternity leave, the American had a different journey back to tennis.

She spent several months away from the sport in 2023 to focus on her mental health. After failing to qualify for last years Championships, while ranked No. 189, Anisimova will break into the Top 10 for the first time of her career regardless of what happens against Aryna Sabalenka on Thursday.

Their comeback runs will be put to the test as Bencic and Anisimova will face opponents with eight major titles combined. Though, neither Swiatek nor Sabalenka have reached the final at Wimbledon.

Speaking of dethroning champions, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have won the last six Grand Slams on the men’s side and both advanced to another major semifinal.

Unlike Alcaraz, Sinner is looking for his first Wimbledon title. If you’re wondering, his elbow looked OK on Wednesday.

The World No. 1 had a dominating win over No. 10 seed Ben Shelton, sweeping the American in straights, despite some injury concerns after a hard fall in his match against Grigor Dimitrov.

Sinner has now won 15 consecutive sets over Shelton and advanced to his second semifinal at SW19. The three-time major winner is gunning for his first Grand Slam title off of hard courts.

Listen now to hear Andy describe Sinner’s “airtight” performance and explain why it’s so challenging to get him off rhythm.

If Sinner is to advance to his first final at the All England Club, he’ll have to get past the man who is trying to reach his seventh consecutive Wimbledon final.

Novak Djokovic, for the second time this tournament, shook off a first set loss and took the next three. This time it came at the expense of 23-year-old Flavio Cobolli.

Though, Cobolli’s impressive run to his first major quarterfinal will boost him into the Top 20 of the rankings for the first time. 

Djokovic, the No. 6 seed, reached his 14th Wimbledon semifinal, surpassing Roger Federer (13) for the most by a man at the All England Club.

He now has 52 major semifinal appearances which ties Chris Evert for the most all time in the Open Era. Djokovic also notched his 102nd win at Wimbledon, the most victories he’s had any event.

The record the 38-year-old is most focused on: that historic 25th major title.

In his way, once again, is Sinner.

While Djokovic won their only two matches on grass, both at Wimbledon, the World No. 1 has taken the last four, including their semifinal match at Roland-Garros last month.

Andy praises Djokovic for his ‘match management’ and details what he’ll need to do to advance to another Wimbledon final.

He also breaks down the other men’s semifinal match which will feature Alcaraz vs. No. 5 seed Taylor Fritz.

Former World No. 9 Fabio Fognini announced his retirement at Wimbledon on Wednesday.

The final match of his professional career was at the most iconic venue in the sport: Centre Court at the All England Club. The 38-year-old pushed two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz to a fifth set on the opening day of the tournament.

"It was the perfect way to say goodbye to this sport. I was able to play in an era that probably is going to be the best era forever in the sport. I played against Roger, against Rafa, against Nole,” Fognini said at a press conference.

Over the course of his 21-year career, Fognini won nine singles titles and eight doubles titles. He claimed a Grand Slam title in doubles at the 2015 Australian Open.

Despite officially retiring, he returned to Centre Court on Wednesday to watch his compatriot Flavio Cobolli play Novak Djokovic.

2 — Belinda Bencic is only the second Swiss woman in the Open Era to reach singles semifinals on multiple surfaces at Grand Slam events, after Martina Hingis.

3 — Jannik Sinner is the youngest player to reach the semifinals in four consecutive Grand Slam men’s singles events since Rafa Nadal in 2009.

3/3 — Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka are the first duo to reach the semifinals at each of the first three women’s singles majors of the season since Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters in 2006.

Women’s Semifinals: Thursday, July 10

No. 1 Aryana Sabalenka vs. No. 13 Amanda Anisimova: They may have played each other at Roland-Garros last month, and have met seven other times, but this will be their first match on grass. Anisimova, who leads their head-to-head 5-3, is back in a major semifinal for the first time since 2019 and is one win away from her first Grand Slam final. Meanwhile, Sabalenka is looking to return to a major final in her fourth consecutive appearance. It would be the first time she reached the final at Wimbledon.

No. 8 Iga Swiatek vs. Belinda Bencic: Bencic joins Anisimova as players to return to a major semifinal for the first time in more than five years. The new mom has surged up the rankings since returning to the tour after the birth of her daughter. In her way: five-time major winner Swiatek who has already won 8 grass-court matches, the most she’s had in a single season. Though, this is her first Wimbledon semifinal. Swiatek said her confidence on grass has gone up with each match.

Thursday’s Full Order Of Play