By Michael Davey
Cameron Norrie, the last British singles player standing at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships, lost his highly anticipated quarter-final clash with Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday to end local title hopes for another year.
Alcaraz moves on to contest the semi-finals, joining the likes of Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, and Taylor Fritz in the hunt for the Gentlemen’s Singles crown.
On the women’s side, Aryna Sabalenka came through an uncomfortable bout with Laura Siegemund to grab a last-four berth alongside Iga Świątek, Amanda Anisimova, and Belinda Bencic.
Alcaraz takes down Norrie
Despite riding a wave of personal and national optimism heading into the match, Norrie struggled massively against the brilliant Spaniard once action got underway on Centre Court, eventually going down in straight sets 6-2, 6-3, 6-3.
Norrie, however, chose to remain positive in the aftermath of a humbling defeat, saying: “I think there’s a lot of positives. I think most of all was how I went about my business in the tournament, how I enjoyed all the moments, all the different matches.
“I think just so much fun. I felt really free on the court. I think my ability to hold my concentration, especially in that [Nicolas] Jarry match where I could have gone away at any moment, I can take so much confidence from that.
“It’s almost like I’d done a mini pre-season in that match. I can take a lot from that match. I know I have the ability to concentrate for that period of time in a best-of-five match. For me, it was a lot of fun.”
Meanwhile, for two-time defending champion and current world No.2 Alcaraz, the victory was yet another sign of his growing confidence.
“I think it’s all kind of coming together,” he said after the match. “I told you guys that I was hitting the ball well all year. I wanted it to happen.
“I think actually winning the matches and actually going through these experiences, you can take so much confidence from this. I want to just continue to play with confidence.
“I feel like I’ve been through a lot of tough moments in this week and a half and a lot of different kind of players and being the favourite, being the underdog in different scenarios.
“I think I’ve tested myself in all different aspects of the game, which is huge. I’ve always come out on the positive side. I really feel like I’m enjoying my tennis a lot.”
Alcaraz will meet fifth-seed Taylor Fritz in the semi-finals on Friday after the American dispatched 17th-seed Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4).
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Sabalenka survives Siegemund test
Women’s top-seed Sabalenka suffered an almighty scare against Siegemund in their quarter-final match-up on Tuesday, with the German’s crafty game pushing the powerful Belarusian to her absolute limits.
After mounting a comeback to secure a hard-fought 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 win, Sabalenka revealed her immense relief during the on-court interview.
“I need some time to cool down and recover – she pushed me so much,” the world No.1 admitted. “After the first set, I was looking at my box and saying ‘book the tickets, we’re out of this place’.”
Speaking to reporters after the match, Sabalenka added: “That was a real task. Honestly, I have no idea how I was able to hold myself and to be emotionally so prepared and focused.
“I’m actually really proud of myself because it was really tough battle.”
Sabalenka will now face 13th-seed Anisimova in Thursday’s semi-finals, with the American having beaten Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 7-6 (11-9).
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Świątek brushes aside Samsonova
Sixth-seed Świątek made relatively light work of Liudmila Samsonova on Wednesday, triumphing 6-2, 7-5 on Court One to make the semi-finals at SW19 for the first time in her career.
The four-time French Open champion was elated with the win, saying: “It feels great. Even though it’s the middle of the tournament, I got goosebumps after this win.
“I’ve really enjoyed playing this year and hopefully it’s going to last as long as possible. This year, I feel I can work with it.”
The Polish star is set to play Olympic champion Bencic in the last four, with the Swiss coming through against seventh-seed Mirra Andreeva 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-2).
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Sinner overcomes big-hitting Shelton
Men’s top-seed Sinner knocked out 10th-seed Shelton on Wednesday thanks to a 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, 6-4 victory, in the process showing no signs of the elbow troubles that punctuated his third-round contest with Grigor Dimitrov.
Sinner, for his part, allayed fears over lasting injury, stating after sealing his progression: “When you are in a match with a lot of tension, you try not to think about it. It has improved a lot from yesterday to today. Yesterday my day was very short on the practice court.
“There is no excuse. There is no better stage to play tennis and I think I showed this today.
“Wimbledon is the most special tournament we have in the calendar, so being here again in the last four means a lot to me.”
Next up, Sinner has a date with seven-time champion and sixth-seed Djokovic, who bested 22nd-seed Flavio Cobolli 6-7 (6-8), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4.
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