Tennis News

Giants of their eras: Roger Federer, Taylor Swift meet backstage in Zurich

Retirement is treating Roger Federer well, with the Swiss legend announcing himself as a ‘Swiftie’ after attending Taylor Swift’s concert on Tuesday night in Zurich.

The former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings became the latest star to watch ‘The Eras Tour’ live at Stadion Letzigrund. Federer posted a selfie with Swift on Instagram at the event, where he was wearing several friendship bracelets.

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Last week Federer attended Wimbledon, where it has been a Cruel Summer of weather in west London. With a Blank Space in his diary, Federer then headed to Zurich to watch Swift perform.

In June, WTA star Iga Swiatek’s Wildest Dreams came true when she received a handwritten note from Swift after watching the pop star in Liverpool.

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Granollers/Zeballos continue impressive season, reach Wimbledon SFs

Top seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon on Wednesday when they moved past Germans Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz 6-4, 7-6(3).

The Spanish-Argentine duo is chasing its first major title together and have been impressive on the lawns in west London this fortnight. Granollers and Zeballos are yet to drop a set and were strong in the decisive moments against Krawietz and Puetz, saving all four break points they faced to advance after one hour and 32 minutes.

Earlier this season, Granollers and Zeballos won their sixth ATP Masters 1000 title as a team in Rome before they advanced to the semis at Roland Garros. Granollers and Zeballos, who lost Wimbledon finals in 2021 and 2023, will next face Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson after the Australians beat Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3.

Purcell won the Wimbledon doubles title with Matthew Ebden in 2022. Thompson had never been beyond the third round in the doubles event at the grass-court major before this year.

Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten sprung a surprise when they defeated fourth seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(10-7).

Heliovaara missed Wimbledon 12 months ago to be with his wife for the birth of their second child. The Finn and his British partner are now just two wins away from the title and will next meet Neal Skupski and Michael Venus after the ninth seeds overcame Constantin Frantzen and Hendrik Jebens 7-6(1), 7-6(1). Skupski won the Wimbledon doubles crown in 2023 with Wesley Koolhof.

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Clinical Rybakina into Wimbledon semi-finals

Elena Rybakina cruises into the Wimbledon semi-finals with a clinical win over Elina Svitolina.

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De Minaur withdraws from Wimbledon, Djokovic advances to semi-finals

Alex de Minaur has withdrawn from Wimbledon prior to his quarter-final clash against Novak Djokovic due to injury.

The ninth-seeded Australian announced he was unable to compete against the seven-time champion Djokovic at a press conference. He had spoken of jarring his hip in the closing stages of his fourth-round victory against Arthur Fils, and he was unable to recover in time to take on the second-seeded Djokovic on Centre Court on Wednesday.

Djokovic, the No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings, advances to a semi-final clash against 13th seed Taylor Fritz or 25th seed Lorenzo Musetti at the grass-court major, where he is bidding to equal Roger Federer’s record of eight men’s singles title.

By reaching the last four this year, the 37-year-old Serbian has equalled Federer’s record of 13 appearances in the Wimbledon men’s singles semi-finals.

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How fatherhood has changed Musetti's 'attitude' on court

First-time grand slam quarter-finalist Lorenzo Musetti talks to BBC Sport at Wimbledon about how fatherhood has changed his “attitude” on the tennis court.

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Djokovic didn't 'deserve' disrespect from crowd – McEnroe

Watch as BBC Sport pundit John McEnroe applauds Novak Djokovic for the way he reacted after his quarter-final victory over Holger Rune on Centre Court.

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Through to Wimbledon SFs, Alcaraz's sporting day still not done

With the day’s business successfully taken care of following his four-set win over Tommy Paul in the Wimbledon quarter-finals, defending Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz turned his attention to the second important sporting contest of his day: Spain’s semi-final clash against France at Euro 2024.

Arriving to his media conference a little after kickoff, Alcaraz was asked first up whether the game was on his mind at any stage of his 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 win over the American.

“Honestly, at the beginning of the match I wasn’t thinking about it,” Alcaraz said. “Once I feel like I’m dominating the game, 5-1 in the fourth set, yeah, I thought about it (smiling). I thought a little bit I was on time. I wasn’t.

“After I finished, I did everything in a rush just to be in time to watch a bit of Spain.”

The 21-year-old, who is two matches away from completing the rare Roland Garros-Wimbledon double in the same year, rallied from a set down to beat Paul, No. 13 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Alcaraz has conceded four sets so far this fortnight, having taken four sets to beat 16th-seeded Frenchman Ugo Humbert in the fourth round and five sets to run down American Frances Tiafoe in the third round.

During his recent Roland Garros title run, the 14-time tour-level titlist dropped just one set to reach the semi-finals. And last year at Wimbledon he conceded only two sets through the same stage. Winning under duress this fortnight seems to be making Alcaraz stronger.

“Well, we try just to find solutions. For me obviously it’s going to be really difficult to play my best tennis every match,” Alcaraz said. “I know that there are going to be some matches that I’m not going to find my best tennis even though I have to try to win it.

“I think that what the big three did along their career, they are not going to play [their] best tennis. Even like that, they are going to find their good tennis just to win those matches. That’s what I’m thinking.

“When I’m not playing my best tennis, I’m going to try to find solutions just to be a bit better, just to beat the opponent.”

Alcaraz next faces a rematch of last year’s semi-final against Daniil Medvedev, who took out top seed and World No. 1 Jannik Sinner in five sets Tuesday. The three-time major winner dropped just nine games against Medvedev in the same match last year, but the 2020 Nitto ATP Finals champion continues to grow in confidence on grass.

Alcaraz is expecting a tough battle.

“The most difficult thing about facing Daniil, or the most special thing about him, is he can reach every ball. Well, he is like a wall. Every ball bounces back,” Alcaraz said.

“I feel like I can hit an unbelievable shot, the ball is going to bounce back. Is difficult to play thinking about that.”

Tuesday ended well for Alcaraz, with Spain edging France 2-1 to advance to the final.

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Favourite Rybakina bids to reach Wimbledon semis

Elena Rybakina faces Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina in the Wimbledon quarter-finals, while Novak Djokovic returns to Centre Court to play Alex de Minaur.

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'Beautifully done!' – Paul tops shots of day nine

Watch the best shots of Wimbledon day nine featuring Carlos Alcaraz, Jasmine Paolini and Tommy Paul.

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Sinner: 'I tried to fight with what I had today'

Jannik Sinner’s Wimbledon journey ended at the quarter-final stage on Wednesday. During the Italian’s clash with Daniil Medvedev, he received a medical timeout in the third set due to illness. Sinner had his pulse taken by a doctor and then left the court before he returned to lose in five sets.

“Already this morning I didn’t feel great. I had some problems,” Sinner said in his post-match press conference. “Then with the fatigue, it was tough. But take nothing away from Daniil. I think he played very smart. He played good tennis. That’s it. I went off the court. I didn’t want to go off. The physio told me it was better to take some time because he watched me and I didn’t seem in shape to play. I was struggling physically. It was not an easy moment. I tried to fight with what I had today.

“I was not feeling great. I didn’t vomit. But I took some time because I was dizzy quite a lot. Off court, I had the toughest time. When I went back, I tried my best.”

Sinner was aiming for a second consecutive Wimbledon semi-final appearance. The 14-time tour-level titlist had won his past five Lexus ATPHead2Head meetings with fifth seed Medvedev, who now holds a 7-5 lead.

The No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, who won in Halle last month, is frustrated he was unable to play at his best.

“I felt like I was playing some good tennis,” said Sinner, who dropped just one set en route to the fourth round. “I had tough opponents to reach this point. But it also gives you confidence when you beat certain players. It’s tough because I felt like I was feeling the ball in a very positive way. Also today I tried. Just the ending was not what I wanted.

“It is a tough one to swallow. But the season is going very positive, a lot of wins, not so many losses. The losses are very tight matches. The level is there. That’s the most important. Just watching out for the positives.”

Sinner said that he never considered retiring during the five-set defeat despite struggling. The 22-year-old won the fourth set after receiving treatment in the third but was unable to match Medvedev’s intensity in the decider.

“I was surprised that I pushed the match longer. I retired a lot two years ago. I don’t want to retire if it’s only a little bit of illness or sick,” Sinner said. “I was still in shape to play somehow. In the fifth set I felt a little bit better again. The energy level was a bit up. Today the energy level was not consistent. It was up and down. It’s also not easy to handle the situations on the court.

“It happens. I was never thinking about retiring. For sure the crowd helped me a lot trying to push me. You don’t want to retire in a quarter-final of a Grand Slam.”

Sinner leaves Wimbledon holding a 42-4 record on the season, having won titles at the Australian Open and in Rotterdam, Miami and Halle. Sinner is first in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin but Carlos Alcaraz can close to 250 points if he wins his fourth major.

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