By Martyn Herman and Shrivathsa Sridhar
LONDON, July 7 (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic outlasted third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the longest Wimbledon quarter-final in history as the Serb prevailed 7-6(10) 3-6 6-3 6-7(4) 7-6(10-4) in five hours and 15 minutes on Tuesday to set up a showdown with holder Jannik Sinner.
The victory kept alive the 39-year-old’s hopes of capturing a record-equalling eighth crown at the All England Club and a 25th Grand Slam trophy that will take him to the top of the all-time list of major champions.
Djokovic may be in the twilight of his glittering career and facing questions about his powers fading in recent years but the seventh seed showed he was every bit the competitor with a Centre Court display that left fans in raptures.
“It’s exciting to be part of such an epic match that was played over five hours, whatever it was. I don’t even know the exact time,” Djokovic told reporters.
“It was one of the best matches I was part of in Wimbledon. I don’t recall playing this long. Maybe the Roger Federer final in 2019 comes close in terms of the time and length.
“But it was really super even. Anyone’s game. Felix played on a high level. He dropped his level a little bit in that super tiebreak. I used all my opportunities and hung in there, played the right shots. That was enough.
“The crowd was up on their feet, particularly the last 30 minutes. They also recognised how special the moment is of us battling the curfew, as well, a few minutes before 11 p.m.”
GAUFF, ZVEREV BREAK NEW GROUND
While Djokovic reached a record-extending 15th Wimbledon semi-final, American Coco Gauff and Germany’s Alexander Zverev broke new ground but Naomi Osaka’s title hopes evaporated on a blazing day at the All England Club.
Hot weather warnings might have furrowed the brow of men’s defending champion Jannik Sinner but he tamed German veteran Jan-Lennard Struff 7-5 7-6(4) 6-3 to reach the semi-finals.
Seventh seed Gauff’s relationship with grass has been lukewarm since she made her Wimbledon debut as a 15-year-old in 2019 and had never gone past the fourth round.
The bond is clearly getting stronger though as she proved with a composed 4-6 6-3 6-3 victory over American number one and fourth seed Jessica Pegula on Centre Court.
OSAKA’S BID FOR FIFTH MAJOR HALTED
Second seed Zverev, whose Wimbledon ceiling had also previously been the last 16, returned to finish off dangerous Czech Jiri Lehecka to reach his first quarter-final here.
The 29-year-old was three games from victory on Monday evening before being snagged by Wimbledon’s curfew and despite allowing Lehecka back into the match on the resumption, he completed a 6-4 7-5 3-6 7-6(6) win.
The French Open champion will be back on court on Wednesday to face sixth-seeded American Taylor Fritz in a battle of 140 mph servers.
Osaka’s outfits and tennis have sparkled in equal measure at this year’s Championships, and the Japanese player’s dominant victory over world number one Aryna Sabalenka on Sunday had many predicting she could go on and win a fifth Grand Slam title.
The 14th seed ran into inspired Czech Karolina Muchova in the quarter-finals on Tuesday, however, losing 7-6(4) 6-4.
On a day of personal bests, Muchova also ensured her deepest Wimbledon run after twice falling in the last eight and the 10th seed will now stand in the way of Gauff.
GAUFF’S GRASS DROUGHT ENDING
Muchova could be joined in the semi-finals by a second Czech on Wednesday when Linda Noskova plays Elise Mertens.
Gauff’s progress at this year’s Wimbledon has been far from smooth, dropping sets in three of her four matches.
But she is finding ways to win. Friend and doubles partner Pegula, playing her first ever match on Centre Court, looked the more assured player for a set and a half on Tuesday but Gauff solved the puzzle for an impressive victory.
“Pretty insane, honestly,” was Gauff’s immediate reaction to the win over her fellow American. “Considering how I hadn’t won a match on grass in two years before this tournament, I’m definitely just really happy with how I played today.”
Zverev lost 12 of the first 13 points as he resumed at 3-3 in the third set against Lehecka and looked heavy-legged as all his good work on Monday appeared to be unravelling.
But he steadied the ship and, despite serving a double-fault on match point in the fourth-set tiebreak, he got it done.
“Who would have thought it’s only taken me 12 years to get (to my first Wimbledon quarter-final), but I’m incredibly happy and relieved. But of course I want to play three more matches,” he said on a paint-peeling day in London SW19.
NO SWEAT FOR SINNER
Sinner’s second-round meltdown in a Parisian heatwave a few weeks ago had raised doubts about the red-haired Italian’s ability to operate in extreme temperatures.
He never managed to find top gear against Grand Slam quarter-final debutant Struff and things might have got sweaty if he had not saved a set point in the second set.
But, ultimately, precision serving eased the top seed through to his 10th Grand Slam semi-final, where he faces seven-times champion Djokovic in a rematch of their clash at the same stage last year.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman, Shrivathsa Sridhar, Pritha Sarkar, Clare Lovell and Alan Baldwin; Editing by Alison Williams and Ken Ferris)
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