Of late, a high-stakes Aryna Sabalenka match has been synonymous with an emotional roller-coaster. The French Open semifinal she won against Iga Swiatek, the final she lost to Coco Gauff and match-up in Berlin last month against former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina that she edged after a third-set tiebreak are all examples.
On Tuesday (July 8, 2025) at the Centre Court, the World No. 1 was part of another topsy-turvy encounter, albeit against the less-pedigreed German Laura Siegemund, before managing to just about avert a ship-wreck and win 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
To meet Anisimova
In her third Wimbledon singles semifinal, she will meet American Amanda Anisimova, who overcame Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 7-6(9).
“Honestly I need some time to cool down and recover,” Sabalenka said after the victory. “After the first set, I was looking at my box thinking: ‘book my tickets, we’re about to leave this beautiful tournament.’’’
That she did not brought immense relief, for the All England Club this year has seen an exodus of seeds, and losing the No. 1 player would have been another body blow.
However, for a good part of the nearly three-hour battle, there was no clear winner. And it reflected in the whopping 14 breaks of serve (eight of them for Sabalenka) and a near-equivalent number of winners and errors from both players — Sabalenka’s 29 winners and 36 unforced errors to Siegemund’s 28 and 35.
Siegemund, 37, may have been ranked outside the top-100 and playing only her second Major singles quarterfinal, but her tennis at SW19 this edition has been top draw.
She hadn’t lost a set — in fact, not more than four games in any set — and had taken out Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the third round in emphatic fashion (6-3, 6-3).
Against Sabalenka, she oozed that confidence, bringing to the fore her diverse skills to handle the Belarusian’s power-heavy game.
The German has a better doubles ranking (No. 22 to No. 104 in singles) and has also won three Slams. And the understanding thus gained, of space and angles —more geometry than tennis —shone through.
In the first set that Siegemund took 6-4, she sliced, diced and drop-shotted her way to throw Sabalenka off even as the 27-year-old struggled with her serving and saw her seconds attacked mercilessly.
In the next set, Sabalenka found a calm period and broke her opponent to go 4-2 up. Serving at 30-30, she let rip an astonishing inside-out winner that seemed to release a lot of pent up tension.
Even though that seventh game stretched to deuce, and Sabalenka had to save a break-point with a tough, back-pedalling overhead smash before holding to 5-2, it stabilised her. Siegemund’s serve was immediately broken and the contest levelled.
In the third, breaks were traded twice before Sabalenka, at 4-4, put together an all-important clean hold, winning to 15 and with two aces.
Sealing it
Through the afternoon, a break of serve had seemed more probable than a hold and the German duly wilted as Sabalenka wrapped it up with a head-high forehand volley.
Carlos Alcaraz, who followed Sabalenka and Siegemund on to Centre Court, sucked out all the nervous energy with a clinical display to beat local favourite Cameron Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-3.
In the last-four, the two-time defending champion will take on American Taylor Fritz, who beat Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4).
Published – July 09, 2025 12:47 am IST
