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Elena Rybakina cancelled Ajla Tomljanovic’s strong start with an amazing two-set comeback that sealed a spot for tonight’s semi v Simona Halep at Wimbledon

by Sports Benches

We’re all gutted for our Aussie Ajla Tomljanovic – who may not have held off Elena Rybakina following a brilliant opening set spell – but she has bowed out with her head held high after back-to-back Ladies’ Singles Quarter-Finals here at Wimbledon. At the end of the day though, what a performance from Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina with the win from the opening set down to just being too good in the end. Her next opponent now for tonight’s semi-final will be 16th seed Simona Halep from Romania, as the final score was 6-4, 2-6, 3-6.

As said just above, Tomljanovic fought off a competitive battle at the start that earned her the opening set lead, where she was just one set away from advancing through to tonight’s semis. Unfortunately, she just couldn’t find the execution needed to cross the finish line first when Rybakina held her back at 1-1 apiece- before it was too late when Tomljanovic was eventually overtaken that confirmed elimination on the run home. It doesn’t mean the hard work is well and truly done, having mastered over the last two years on the grass court. Now let’s see if she can replicate the same thing on the hard surface. Her best result over in that surface was the 3rd Round at the US Open last year; So hopefully, that would give her some confidence going into next year’s Australian Open in Melbourne.

And congratulations to Rybakina who is set to play in her first ever grand slam semi final v Halep. She may have narrowly lost the first set but it doesn’t mean this tie was over just yet. The response she made to hold back Tomljanovic going into the final set decider before firing away home first with the execution & patience shows that she has no reason to be scared of her next opponent. She’s young with so much potential at age 23 alongside a really tall stature at just six foot to knock any opponent out of the park. There could be two first timers for Saturday’s final with either Ons Jabeur or Tatjana Maria, but it only depends on Rybakina‘s ability to get the job done against someone – who is very experienced with two grand slam championships to Halep’s name.

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Wimbledon 2022: Two Aussies Ajla Tomljanovic and Nick Kyrgios on the hunt towards their potential semi-final singles’ berth on Day 10 today

by Sports Benches

We still have two Aussies standing in the last eight at Wimbledon that will begin in a few hours’ time – Nick Kyrgios and Ajla Tomljanovic. Yes, we’ve heard the unexpected news from off-court yesterday that Nick Kyrgios has been hit with a domestic violence assault charge over his ex-girlfriend from December last year. Nevertheless, he will still be playing v Cristian Garin from Chile in a bid to advance through to Friday’s Semis against – either American Taylor Fritz or Spaniard Rafa Nadal, as his next trial will take place next month at a court in Canberra.

We would’ve love to see an all-Australian QF with Kyrgios & Alex De Minaur that would guarantee an Aussie going into the semis but De Minaur’s great start after the first two sets was eventually hijacked by his upcoming opponent. Neither does Jason Kubler when he also advanced through to the last 16 before he was easily beaten by Fritz but then it would’ve been another hard next match anyway v one of the world’s best in Rafa.

While we won’t make any further comments about his off-court situation – especially when Kyrgios has such a big reputation there of being famous- but right now he will want to focus on the game if he still wants to be the last man standing going into the last four for Australia.

Meanwhile, we have Ajla Tomljanovic as our other female Aussie in the ladies’ singles last eight v 17th seed from Kazakhstan – Elena Rybakina. She has demonstrated brilliant fightback from the opening set down in her last two rounds v Barbora Krejcikova (Czech Republic) & Alize Cornet (France) respectively. Now she’s ready to unpack these strengths in order to eliminate Ryabakina, and hopefully advance into the semis tomorrow for a shot towards Saturday’s big final against – either Simona Halep from Romania or USA’s Amanda Anisimova.

Here we come as these two Aussies look set to make history on Day 10 at Wimbledon!

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Ons Jabeur advances through to the semis after a brilliant comeback from the opening set down v Marie Bouzkova at Wimbledon

by Sports Benches

Another fantastic match to look back on Day 9 yesterday at Wimbledon was the ladies’ singles Quarter-Final between Marie Bouzkova from Czech Republc and Tunisian Ons Jabeur out on Centre Court. They both battled a couple of early duels before Bouzkova pulled off easily for the opening set lead. However, Jabeur had the last laugh when she came from a set down to a magnificent comeback over the next two sets – which was enough to book her a spot in the semis v German Tatjana Maria on Thursday. The final score was 6-3, 1-6, 1-6.

It was a fast start from Bouzkova where she was only one set away from shutting Jabeur down going into the 2nd set. She just couldn’t cope with Jabeur’s fightback, however, when the pressure began to mount on her going into the 3rd and final set at 1-1 apiece. Unfortunately – Bouzkova ran out of ideas to stop Jabeur’s renewed momentum in its tracks before the Tunisian confirmed her elimination on the run home. This was maiden grand slam singles QF though at age 23, as there’s plenty of room to improve going into the US Open late next month.

And what a comeback from Ons Jabeur as this will be her first ever grand slam semis here at Wimbledon. She may have lost some grip earlier on but she went back up and controlled the court in no time ever since. Doubling up an easy 1-6 spell over the next two sets with patience proved that she turned out to be the better all-round player than Bouzkova in the end. She’s has got everything it takes now to potentially advance through to the Final & also take home the ladies’ singles trophy for the first time – which would be a huge breakthrough moment from the 27-year old. But it remains to be seen if she can get past Tatjana Maria from Germany on Day 11 tomorrow.

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Cameron Norrie is one tie away from being the next Briton in-line for a home grand slam final after he defeated David Goffin in the Quarter-Final

by Sports Benches

What a thrilling Quarter-Final match to close out Day 9 of Wimbledon when we saw two brilliant players battle for that 1st of two semi-final spots for Friday v Novak Djokovic. We love seeing Belgian David Goffin & Britain’s Cameron Norrie fought back and forth through each and every set until the very end. There’s only one winner to settle at Court No.1 as Norrie came out victorious for Great Britain – 6-3, 5-7, 6-2, 3-6 & 5-7.

So unlucky from Belgian No.1 David Goffin who was just being eliminated from the last 8 of this gentlemen’s singles draw. He fired off well for a start before Goffin bounced back after the third set in a bid to wrap things up from his end. Sadly, he just couldn’t overcome the persistence, fightback and execution when Norrie brought to a fifth and final set showdown before it was too late. He’s always a top player with so much effort though, as this was his fourth grand slam Quarter-Final appearance since the 2019 edition here.

Meanwhile, Great Britain is right behind Norrie now in a bid to upsurge Djokovic in the semis on Friday, and be the next Briton to play on a home grand slam final since Andy Murray back in 2016. He finally got the ball rolling when Goffin already took the 1st set lead earlier on. However, that doesn’t mean it’s over when it comes to the overall result – as Norrie just never gave up under pressure all match long. It helped him respond every time Goffin fought back – especially after the 4th set that gave him a lifeline to close it out his way. And that is top level tennis from Norrie when he proved to be a better fighter than Goffin, before he kicked his opponent out of the Final 8 with a brilliant finish to seal the win in front of his home supporters.

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Ajla Tomljanovic – the only Aussie left standing in the Wimbledon Ladies Singles’ 4th Round after she went from the 1st set to a comeback win v Barbora Krejcikova

by Sports Benches

Apart from the three Aussies being confirmed in the men’s singles fourth round with Alex De Minaur, Jason Kubler & Nick Kyrgios; We do only have one player left over at the women’s singles side – also in the fourth round – in none other than Ajla Tomljanovic. She too came from behind to eliminate the 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova from Czech Republic – 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 at Court No.12.

It’s not the exit the Czech wanted following a great start to this tie with an easy first set spell. She just couldn’t build on to bring herself home first ever since with two missed opportunities being taken away. She struggled to bridge that 2nd half consistency before Tomljanovic stepped in to tie at 1-1 apiece, brought it to a 3rd set decider where she later lost the lead & now it’s too late. She also hasn’t had a great grand slam record lately following her 1st round elimination recently at the French Open. But she’s 26 having made the Quarter-Finals earlier this year at the Australian Open, as it’s still possible for her to end her 2022 grand slam season on a high just like it was last year in the Final 8 at the US Open.

Meanwhile, Congratulations to Tomljanovic with the win she deserves against one of the past grand slam champions on-display. She may be disappointed with the poor start there by Krejcikova. However, she never gave up when Tomljanovic began to make up lost time as this tie goes on. Not only she was better than her opponent when it comes to the 2nd half pull, but also the persistence & fightback that helped gave herself another lifeline going into the 3rd set decider. From there, it allowed her a bit more time to read about Krejcikova’s on-court approach/body language before Tomljanovic smashed her way past the finish line first for the win.

It will be interesting to see if she can get past Alize Cornet from France on Monday – who just eliminated World No.1 Iga Swiatek from Poland – also in the third round tie – 4-6, 2-6. Should she win once again, it will be back-to-back Final 8s for another year here at Wimbledon.

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Wimbledon 2022: Nick Kyrgios shocks 4th Seed Stefanos Tsitsipas with the upset win going into the 4th Round v Brandon Nakashima on Monday

by Sports Benches

What an upset it has been from our Aussie own Nick Kyrgios who just knocked 4th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas out of the third round at Wimbledon. Both players played really well where Tsitsipas just narrowly beat Kyrgios for the first set lead via the tiebreak. However, Kyrgios had the better fightback than Tsitsipas that saw him win over the next three consecutive sets that sealed his upset. The final score at Court No.1 is 6-2 via 2-7 tiebreaker, 6-4, 6-3 & 7-6 via 9-7 tiebreaker.

Gutted for Tsitsipas with the shock elimination there, even though he fought hard all the way until the very end. The fire off was there when he just shut down Kyrgios with the opening set lead after a series of competitive duels going into the tiebreak. Although he had the opportunity to bring it towards the 5th & final set decider via another tiebreak; unfortunately, he just didn’t have the consistency needed to stay ahead & execute it his way. It’s the one big weakness where he was exposed as this tie goes on by Kyrgios.

And congratulations to Krygios with the win as he advances into the fourth round on Monday v American Brandon Nakashima. If he wins that next round tie, then this will be the third Quarter-Final appearance; first since the 2015 Australian Open and second here at Wimbledon back in 2014. He may have fell short in the opening set spell but he proved to be the better player than Tsitsipas when it comes to the 2nd half pull ever since. We love his fightback when he went from the opening set down to winning the next three straight sets. It tested his persistence to respond back to Tsitsipas under pressure before he upsurged his opponent in the process; first with the lead after the 3rd set, then the victory he deserved in front of these delightful and excited spectators.

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Andy Murray concludes the opening day’s play of the 2022 Wimbledon with the First Round win v Australia’s James Duckworth

by Sports Benches

We wrap up the opening day of Wimbledon at Centre Court with Grand Slam veteran Andy Murray from Britain v one of our Aussies in action – James Duckworth.

What a brilliant response from Duckworth with early 1st set lead out of nowhere, having held Murray back for a while before he moved onto the 2nd set in his way. However, he just couldn’t kick on ever since where Murray had the better execution and long-run consistency in the end, with three sets being tied up to advance into Round 2 for Day 3 tomorrow v 20th Seed John Isner from the USA.

The final score is 4-6 to Duckworth; 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 to Murray.

It’s gutting to see Duckworth leave very early but great effort though to try & stay in this fight nonetheless. He’s always great at responding which is one of the traits you need to be prepared at grand slam level, having won the opening set following a poor start there. But building on that opening set lead to keep it consistent & executing it is another trait if you really want to go all the way – which is something he couldn’t do before he left it too late by the fourth set. He’s 30 now so let’s hope he learns a thing or two from the legend like Murray so Duckworth can possibly make more possible upsets like this.

And congratulations to Andy Murray with the win – who still has something to offer at the age of 35 – even though he hasn’t advanced to any finals appearance in recent years since the 2017 US Open Quarter-Finals. He was tested earlier on when his fantastic start to this opening tie was challenged by Duckworth en route for the opening set lead. At the end of the day however, he’s good at being persistent where Murray was too good over the next two sets – before he came home first at his own pace that denied Duckworth the chance to bring out the 5th & final set decider. Now Cameron Norrie may have the top-ranked seed at No.9 by a Briton, but Murray still has his supporters’ backing in a bid to get back to his best on home soil if he can get past Isner.

#Wimbledon #Tennis #GrandSlam #AndyMurray #JamesDuckworth

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Ons Jabeur enters this year’s Wimbledon as the 3rd seed with an easy win v Mirjam Bjorklund in straight sets

by Sports Benches

It was a very easy start to this year’s Wimbledon campaign from Tunisian Ons Jabeur who was too good against Sweden’s Mirjam Bjorklund in straight sets – 6-1, 6-3 during the Opening Round at the No.1 Court.

It’s not the quick exit Bjorklund’s gone through after the opening day of this competition. She responded well on occasions – especially later in the 2nd set when Bjorklund tried to save this tie going into the 3rd & final set decider in an outside shot to knock out Jabeur. Unfortunately, she just couldn’t match the all-round momentum that Jabeur has set up from start to finish where she fell way behind off the pace following the 1st set before she couldn’t catch up ever since.

Meanwhile, it’s good to see Jabeur firing up who just entered Wimbledon as the 3rd seed in this Women’s Singles’ draw. She showed plenty of optimism & fight with a balance of consistency that helped her wrap up an easy win v Bjorklund; She will now advance into Round 2 v Poland’s Katarzyna Zawa for Day 3 tomorrow.

There’s still a long way to go though if she wants to get past her best result at the Quater-Finals, having last made the last eight 12 months ago here which was her second grand slams finals appearance since the 2020 Australian Open. Should this happen, she can go on & have a stab in her first Semis before Jabeur hopes to capture her breakthrough moment with a grand slam trophy on her hands at age 27.

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2022 French Open Day 15: Rafa Nadal pulled off way comfortably against Casper Ruud en route to his 22nd grand slam title here at Court Philippe Chatrier

by Sports Benches

What a way to close out after 15 days of top-standard grand slam tennis with the men’s singles’ final in this year’s French Open. World No.8 from Norway Casper Ruud did his best to hold out Rafa earlier on between the 1st and 2nd sets. But it’s Rafa who was outstanding for the whole time that blew Ruud away so easily with the championship win at Court Philippe Chatrier; 6-3, 6-3, 6-0.

It’s not the ending Casper Ruud hoped for after he finished runner-up in his first ever grand slam singles’ final at age 23. He showed some fight when trying to catch up to Nadal earlier on, as well as the 2nd set restart where Ruud got the better momentum there. However, a poor opening set start and a lack of 2nd half pull robbed him the chance to shut down Rafa, before he was comfortably beaten without any game registered by the 3rd & final set. What he can learn from his first-ever grand slam final is for Ruud to take out these positives that helped him work his way through this men’s singles draw, and try go go one better later this year at Wimbledon and/or US Open. There’s still plenty of time left to make history of world tennis throughout this 2020s decade.

And once again this is grand slam title No.22, as well as his 14th French Open Championship for Rafa Nadal aka The King of Clay. He fired off comfortably with a decent early lead against Ruud where the Norwegian may have held Rafa back a bit when he was being tested. But he was simply too good where he had the better experience, patience, fightback & execution to pull off from start to finish in three straight sets. It will be interesting to see if Rafa can complete the clean sweep with all four grand slam titles in the one year going into Wimbledon in a few weeks, as well as the US Open in late August-early September. He also just turned 36 a few days ago where this will be his next and last golden target before Rafa retires.

Two grand slams done, two to go. We now turn our attention to The Championships at Wimbledon in London, England, from Monday June 27 to Sunday July 10.

#Tennis #RafaNadal #CasperRuud #FrenchOpen #GrandSlam #RolandGarros #Spain #Norway #CourtPhilippeChatrier #ATPTour

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2022 French Open Day 14: Iga Swiatek too good from start to finish v Coco Gauff that clinched her 2nd grand slam championship since the 2020 edition on clay

by Sports Benches

It’s been a quick and easy finish to the women’s singles’ final on Day 14 of this year’s French Open where Iga Swiatek just won her 2nd grand slam title since 2020 here on clay at Court Philippe Chatrier. She had no problem getting the job done fair and square against Coco Gauff in straight sets; 6-1, 6-2.

Yes, it’s hard to look back on what it’s like to settle second best from 18-year-old American Coco Gauff. She had a brilliant restart into the second set in a bid to stay in this fight, having fired off poorly where Gauff fell way behind. However, she lacks the response & finishing needed to put the pressure back on Swiatek where Gauff was easily blown away by the World No.1 in the end. It’s her first grand slam final appearance, as there will be many more chances to savour if Gauff vows to come stronger for the next tournament at Wimbledon in a few weeks’ time.

And congratulations to Iga Swiatek with her 2nd grand slam championship since the 2020 French Open here. She just proved to be the top-ranked player out on-court today, who can deliver silverware, as she was too good for Gauff unchallenged from start to finish. It’s been another big moment for the 21-year-old from Poland today, having fell short in the semis by Danielle Collins at the Australian Open back in January before she took the World No.1 WTA ranking following Ash Barty’s retirement two months ago, and now won another grand slam with the No.1 on her side. Let’s see if she can dominate the next two Grand Slams at Wimbledon & US Open soon enough later this year.

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