TENNIS - Wimbledon 2025 R4
Jul. 12th, 2025 09:19 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
feather_ghyllBelatedly!
Day seven
I started watching just as Karen Khachenov was a (return) game away from winning, which he did in three sets. Given the way the weather soon turned (rain, thunder and lightning), he must have been pleased he’d got it done. I watched the early exchanges between Taylor Fritz and Jordan Thompson under the roof on Court No. 1, where there was talk about Thompson’s back issues. As I was watching the main coverage, I watched the introduction of the sporting champions in the royal box on Centre, and then switched back to see that Fritz was a set up and soon a break up, and Thompson was clearly hampered. (He would retire soon after that.)
So, I turned to the Centre Court feed, and the Kartal vs Pavluychenkova match was competitive. A chance for both, as they were unseeded, and had never played before. Contrasting styles: Kartal is a mover who’ll run anything down, Pavluychenkova is a big hitter. She’s also more experienced and used to playing at a higher level.
There were a lot of breaks, and then at 4-4, something really unfortunate happened, for it turned out they forgot to switch the automatic line calling. And this was actually for a whole game, but it became a real problem on A GAME POINT. The video replay made it clear that Kartal’s ball was, as Pavluychenkova noted, well out, but that’s not admissible, and the umpire forced them to replay a point that Pavluychenkova had already won, and that a point that should have meant she was sitting down 5-4 up. Kartal won it and, in fact, the game. It felt like a moral victory that Pavlyuchenkova won the next game and was up 6-5, though it went to a tiebreak. Her mental fortitude helped her to win it.
As the umpire had called other balls in that game out, I totally get why she felt hard done by that he wouldn’t call that ball out when it was clearly out (or checked in why the automatic line calling wasnt working properly.) Wimbledon has apologised and said they’ve changed their procedures so it won’t happen again, but they’ve probably got to bring in video replay as a back-up, as happens in other tournaments, which would also help regarding double bounces.
Although the second set started off competitively, Pavluychenkova had settled a little, and was able to play with more freedom, ending up winning in two, but this has been a great tournament for Kartal, showing off her composure, belief and speed. She absolutely belongs in the top 50, and did better than Raducanu and Boulter.
I watched Norrie winning the second set against Jarry.
The next match on Centre was between former doubles partners Aryna Sabalenka and Elise Mertens. Mertens came out blazing, knowing she had to attack at any opportunity, and she executed impressively. Her serve was good and her backhand a menace. Sabalenka was mostly herself, but actually got broke first, and Mertens consolidated it. Still, Sabalenka found a way to break her opponent, and her own backhand was immense. So, she was up a set.
It continued to be a quality match because both were mainly winning by winners or very forced errors. Mertens was playing at a fabulous level to be able to compete with Sabalenka (who must be irritated at her opponents for raising their game like this, even if it is, weirdly, a compliment.) But Sabalenka plays at a fabulous level most days, and broke not once, but twice with her big hitting and the other layers she’s developed to her game, making her more willing to come forward and finish a point off. Excellent match for the right reasons, and Mertens should remember she has this level in her (much better than her ranking of 24) and aim to maintain it for the rest of the year.
But Sabalanka – charming in the on-court interview – hasn’t dropped a set.
Next up, Carlos Alcaraz vs. Andrey Rublev. Worth noting that they were seeded to meet, which is a rarity this year. Rublev had a win on Alcaraz, but it was on a different surface. He started off blazing, while Alcaraz was maybe feeling his way in. Rublev broke and consolidated, but Alcaraz locked down his serve (as he would for the rest of the match. Rublev had a few break points, but they would all be saved, and Alcaraz’s ace total was immense.) He broke back and took it to a tiebreak, which Rublev won with one good point and then two fabulous points, which was impressive because before that Alcaraz had won a point he shouldn’t have by his amazing movement enabling him to retrieve, and then hitting a winner.
One set down, Alcaraz continued to play well, and smartly too. He knew that he couldn’t let it become a slugfest, Rublev’s strengths are his serve and his forehand (his backhand isn’t too shabby either.) Alcaraz countered with variety to rob him of rhythm, absolutely showed up Rublev’s net game, and was generally stronger on return, getting his racquet on what should have been aces, getting the ball back in and asking questions. He took advantage of something like one mediocre game from his opponent per set (full disclosure, I did fastforward a lot through this match) to win in four sets, emphasising the difference between a good player who’s been in the top 10 and a great player who is defending champion.
Alcaraz was also charming in his on-court interview.
Day eight
I watched a bit of the Cilic vs. Cobolli match, learning that Cobolli had only once dropped a game so far in the tournament, which must have given him confidence. He took advantage of a weaker game from Cilic in the first two sets, and would go on to make his first grand slam quarter-final in four sets.
I watched events on Centre Court at a bit of a remove because of other stuff going on. I think I joined Djokovic v. De Minaur at the end of the second, or possibly in the third, so I missed the first set where Djokovic was playing badly, (I’ve heard that he found the windy conditions troublesome) but then he started doing more Djokovic-y things, and it went about how I’d expected, with De Minaur offering a sterner test than previous opponents, but not able to hurt Djokovic. However, there was speculation about Djokovic’s stomach/chest or something.
Next up, Andreeva vs. Navarro, and the American just didn’t have enough to trouble the teenage Russian, which is sort of what I’d expected. Apparently, Andreeva was so focused on playing every point that she was slow to realise she’d won match point. I’m in the ‘will win a grand slam if not yet’ camp based on what we’ve seen from her.
Then I saw that Dimitrov was up on Sinner (it was only later that I saw the fall on the elbow at the start of the match) because he can slice. He was up two sets, I had it on on mute, and suddenly saw Dimitrov clutching under his arm and in obvious pain. I then learned it was an injury to his pectoral muscle (turned out to be a tear) and he had to retire, ceding to Sinner, who was very much a decent human being in the moment. So, Sinner was through to the quarter finals when he had very much looked as though he would not be, and Dimitrov’s body is against him in the later years of his career.
Day seven
I started watching just as Karen Khachenov was a (return) game away from winning, which he did in three sets. Given the way the weather soon turned (rain, thunder and lightning), he must have been pleased he’d got it done. I watched the early exchanges between Taylor Fritz and Jordan Thompson under the roof on Court No. 1, where there was talk about Thompson’s back issues. As I was watching the main coverage, I watched the introduction of the sporting champions in the royal box on Centre, and then switched back to see that Fritz was a set up and soon a break up, and Thompson was clearly hampered. (He would retire soon after that.)
So, I turned to the Centre Court feed, and the Kartal vs Pavluychenkova match was competitive. A chance for both, as they were unseeded, and had never played before. Contrasting styles: Kartal is a mover who’ll run anything down, Pavluychenkova is a big hitter. She’s also more experienced and used to playing at a higher level.
There were a lot of breaks, and then at 4-4, something really unfortunate happened, for it turned out they forgot to switch the automatic line calling. And this was actually for a whole game, but it became a real problem on A GAME POINT. The video replay made it clear that Kartal’s ball was, as Pavluychenkova noted, well out, but that’s not admissible, and the umpire forced them to replay a point that Pavluychenkova had already won, and that a point that should have meant she was sitting down 5-4 up. Kartal won it and, in fact, the game. It felt like a moral victory that Pavlyuchenkova won the next game and was up 6-5, though it went to a tiebreak. Her mental fortitude helped her to win it.
As the umpire had called other balls in that game out, I totally get why she felt hard done by that he wouldn’t call that ball out when it was clearly out (or checked in why the automatic line calling wasnt working properly.) Wimbledon has apologised and said they’ve changed their procedures so it won’t happen again, but they’ve probably got to bring in video replay as a back-up, as happens in other tournaments, which would also help regarding double bounces.
Although the second set started off competitively, Pavluychenkova had settled a little, and was able to play with more freedom, ending up winning in two, but this has been a great tournament for Kartal, showing off her composure, belief and speed. She absolutely belongs in the top 50, and did better than Raducanu and Boulter.
I watched Norrie winning the second set against Jarry.
The next match on Centre was between former doubles partners Aryna Sabalenka and Elise Mertens. Mertens came out blazing, knowing she had to attack at any opportunity, and she executed impressively. Her serve was good and her backhand a menace. Sabalenka was mostly herself, but actually got broke first, and Mertens consolidated it. Still, Sabalenka found a way to break her opponent, and her own backhand was immense. So, she was up a set.
It continued to be a quality match because both were mainly winning by winners or very forced errors. Mertens was playing at a fabulous level to be able to compete with Sabalenka (who must be irritated at her opponents for raising their game like this, even if it is, weirdly, a compliment.) But Sabalenka plays at a fabulous level most days, and broke not once, but twice with her big hitting and the other layers she’s developed to her game, making her more willing to come forward and finish a point off. Excellent match for the right reasons, and Mertens should remember she has this level in her (much better than her ranking of 24) and aim to maintain it for the rest of the year.
But Sabalanka – charming in the on-court interview – hasn’t dropped a set.
Next up, Carlos Alcaraz vs. Andrey Rublev. Worth noting that they were seeded to meet, which is a rarity this year. Rublev had a win on Alcaraz, but it was on a different surface. He started off blazing, while Alcaraz was maybe feeling his way in. Rublev broke and consolidated, but Alcaraz locked down his serve (as he would for the rest of the match. Rublev had a few break points, but they would all be saved, and Alcaraz’s ace total was immense.) He broke back and took it to a tiebreak, which Rublev won with one good point and then two fabulous points, which was impressive because before that Alcaraz had won a point he shouldn’t have by his amazing movement enabling him to retrieve, and then hitting a winner.
One set down, Alcaraz continued to play well, and smartly too. He knew that he couldn’t let it become a slugfest, Rublev’s strengths are his serve and his forehand (his backhand isn’t too shabby either.) Alcaraz countered with variety to rob him of rhythm, absolutely showed up Rublev’s net game, and was generally stronger on return, getting his racquet on what should have been aces, getting the ball back in and asking questions. He took advantage of something like one mediocre game from his opponent per set (full disclosure, I did fastforward a lot through this match) to win in four sets, emphasising the difference between a good player who’s been in the top 10 and a great player who is defending champion.
Alcaraz was also charming in his on-court interview.
Day eight
I watched a bit of the Cilic vs. Cobolli match, learning that Cobolli had only once dropped a game so far in the tournament, which must have given him confidence. He took advantage of a weaker game from Cilic in the first two sets, and would go on to make his first grand slam quarter-final in four sets.
I watched events on Centre Court at a bit of a remove because of other stuff going on. I think I joined Djokovic v. De Minaur at the end of the second, or possibly in the third, so I missed the first set where Djokovic was playing badly, (I’ve heard that he found the windy conditions troublesome) but then he started doing more Djokovic-y things, and it went about how I’d expected, with De Minaur offering a sterner test than previous opponents, but not able to hurt Djokovic. However, there was speculation about Djokovic’s stomach/chest or something.
Next up, Andreeva vs. Navarro, and the American just didn’t have enough to trouble the teenage Russian, which is sort of what I’d expected. Apparently, Andreeva was so focused on playing every point that she was slow to realise she’d won match point. I’m in the ‘will win a grand slam if not yet’ camp based on what we’ve seen from her.
Then I saw that Dimitrov was up on Sinner (it was only later that I saw the fall on the elbow at the start of the match) because he can slice. He was up two sets, I had it on on mute, and suddenly saw Dimitrov clutching under his arm and in obvious pain. I then learned it was an injury to his pectoral muscle (turned out to be a tear) and he had to retire, ceding to Sinner, who was very much a decent human being in the moment. So, Sinner was through to the quarter finals when he had very much looked as though he would not be, and Dimitrov’s body is against him in the later years of his career.
