Item 1 of 4 Jul 9, 2024; London,United Kingdom; Carlos Alcaraz of Spain returns a shot against Tommy Paul of the United States (not shown) during a match on day nine of The Championships at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
[1/4]Jul 9, 2024; London,United Kingdom; Carlos Alcaraz of Spain returns a shot against Tommy Paul of the United States (not shown) during a match on day nine of The Championships at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
LONDON, July 11 (Reuters) – The Wimbledon men’s singles semi-finals take centre stage at the All England Club on Friday.
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, the third seed, is up against Russian fifth seed Daniil Medvedev in a repeat of their semi-final a year ago.
They will be followed on Centre Court by seven-time champion Novak Djokovic who is taking on Italian Lorenzo Musetti who has reached his first Grand Slam semi-final.
MEDVEDEV AIMING TO AVOID REPEAT AGAINST ALCARAZ
If fifth seed Medvedev is to halt Spaniard Alcaraz’s bid to retain the trophy he won last year he had better arrive on Centre Court with a better plan than a year ago.
On that occasion the Russian baseliner was swept aside in ruthless fashion and Alcaraz then went on to claim the title by defeating Djokovic two days later in the final.
Medvedev will take heart from his five-set victory over world number one Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals, the Russian’s relentless baseline eventually wearing down an opponent who was troubled by illness.
The 28-year-old has won six of his previous eight Grand Slam semi-finals but has only converted one of those progressions into a title – the 2021 U.S. Open.
He avenged his Wimbledon defeat against Alcaraz by beating him in the U.S. Open semi-finals but lost their only meeting this year in the Indian Wells final.
“It’s tough to play against him because you know whatever shot you hit, he can hit a winner from there,” Medvedev said.
“Carlos can do whatever from any position and that’s not easy to play against.”
Alcaraz has worked hard to reach the semi-finals. He needed five sets to edge past Frances Tiafoe in the third round, four to beat Ugo Humbert in the next and also trailed by a set before beating American Tommy Paul in the quarter-finals.
When he needs his A-game, however, Alcaraz steps up and he will have the added incentive, if he required one, of trying to set up a super Sunday for Spain with their soccer team facing England in the Euro 2024 final.
“I’m going to say the most difficult thing about facing Daniil is he can reach every ball. Well, he is like a wall. Every ball bounces back,” he said of Friday’s battle.
DJOKOVIC STANDS IN WAY OF HISTORY-SEEKING MUSETTI
Musetti, the 25th seed, will be trying to follow Jasmine Paolini’s lead in the women’s draw and reach the men’s singles final on what could be an historic day for Italian tennis.
Italy has never had a player in the men’s and women’s singles final at a Grand Slam but standing in Musetti’s way is 37-year-old Djokovic who is eyeing a men’s record-equalling eighth Wimbledon crown and record 25th Grand Slam title.
The Serb, who had knee surgery after the French Open, looked imperious in his fourth-round win over Holger Rune and then got a day off when quarter-final opponent Alex de Minaur withdrew because of a hip injury.
Djokovic’s bizarre post-match outburst against so-called disrespectful fans after his win against Rune will make for an interesting atmosphere on Centre Court, when underdog Musetti will be guaranteed plenty of support.
He will need it as his head-to-head record against Djokovic stands at 1-5 – his only success coming on clay in Monte Carlo last year. He did push the Serb to five sets in the French Open though, a match that finished in the early hours.
“The last match was really an intense match from both players,” Musetti said after his win against Taylor Fritz.
“I think if I play in a certain way, I could have my shot in the next round.”
WIMBLEDON ORDER OF PLAY ON DAY 12
Here is the order of play on Centre Court on day 12 of the Wimbledon championships on Friday (prefix number denotes seeding):
5-Daniil Medvedev v 3-Carlos Alcaraz
25-Lorenzo Musetti v 2-Novak Djokovic
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Reporting by Martyn Herman;
Editing by Alison Williams
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