Wimbledon 2018: Angelique Kerber, Jelena Ostapenko Book Semi-Final Spots
Angelique Kerber and Jelena Ostapenko marched into the semi-finals at Wimbledon on Tuesday, as they beat Daria Kasatkina and Dominika Cibulkova, respectively, in straight sets.
Later in the day Serena Williams is in action, as she will take on Camila Giorgi for a spot in the semi-finals. Elsewhere, Kiki Bertens and Julia Gorges meet in what should be another fascinating quarter-final.
In the men's draw, Juan Martin del Potro set up a semi-final with Rafael Nadal on Wednesday, as he won his delayed match with Gilles Simon.
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Read on for the latest results from the early clashes at Wimbledon on Tuesday and a recap of the best of the action so far.
Tuesday Results
Men's Singles
(5) Juan Martin del Potro bt. Gilles Simon, 7-6(1), 7-6(5), 5-7, 7-6(5)
Women's Singles
(11) Angelique Kerber bt. (14) Daria Kasatkina, 6-3, 7-5
(12) Jelena Ostapenko bt. Dominika Cibulkova, 7-5, 6-4
Tuesday Recap
In what has been a chaotic women's draw at Wimbledon, Kerber is the highest seed in the tournament, ranked 11. The German played with the authority you'd expect in the opening set too.
Kasatkina is an undoubtedly dangerous player, although in the clutch points the German was able to play the better tennis, while her opponent made key errors. In the end, Kerber was a comfortable 6-3 winner.
Kasatkina also found herself 3-1 down in the second set, although battled back well, breaking to level at 3-3. While Kerber did break in the next game, Kasatkina came roaring back, delighting the Centre Court crowd with some sweet hitting.
Per Christopher Clarey of the New York Times, suddenly the Russian was beginning to operate with some swagger:
At this point neither player was able to hold serve. Kerber fashioned a chance to serve for the match but failed to take it. In the following game she set up another with a fine pass down the line; at the second time of asking, after Kastakina saved a remarkable six match points, the two-time Grand Slam champion was able to serve it out.
Ostapenko also made it through, as she eventually came through an absorbing match with Cibulkova. As noted by Eleanor Crooks of the Press Association, in what was a tight opening set, it was the Latvian who showcased the superior striking:
Both players were struggling to hold serve in this encounter, with brilliant winners often offset by rudimentary errors with the ball in hand.
Midway through the second set, Ostapenko did put her foot down, opening up a two-game advantage on Cibulkova and eventually going on to wrap up the match.
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