Top 5 Photos, July 9: Halep hits past Zhang; 'Murena' victorious again
The Romanian is into her first Wimbledon semifinal since 2014, while Serena Williams and Andy Murray picked up another victory in mixed doubles.
Women's quarterfinal action hit the courts at Wimbledon, with three of the four seeded players advancing to the semifinals. These are the Top 5 photos from Tuesday's grass-court play.
1. The 2018 French Open champion fell behind early, but showed her will to win by battling back to capture a close first set and ultimately the match. Simona Halep's 7-6 (4), 6-1 victory over Shuai Zhang moved her one step closer to claiming her second Grand Slam title. The Romanian hadn't reached the semifinals at the All England Club since 2014.
2. Alison Riske pushed Serena Williams, forcing her to up her level of play. In the most crucial points, the 23-time Grand Slam champion have often proven an amazing ability to dig deep and it showed in her 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory. Williams has improved with each match and looks to bring out her best tennis. After falling in her first Wimbledon semifinal in 2000, Williams has run off 10 successive wins in the last four stage at SW19.
3. Barbora Strycova played every point with conviction to clinch a 7-6 (5), 6-1 win against Johanna Konta. At 33, Strycova became the oldest first-time major semifinalist in the Open Era. The Czech will face 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, a player she's yet to win a set off in three previous meetings, all which came in a Grand Slam event, including the first round of 2012 Wimbledon.
4. Elina Svitolina rallied past Karolina Muchova, 7-5, 6-4, to advance into her first career Grand Slam semifinal. With her quarterfinal victory, she became the first Ukrainian woman to get through to the last four of a Grand Slam singles event. Svitolina will face 2018 French Open champion Simona Halep, and while she leads their head-to-head series 4-3, this will be their first meeting on grass.
5. Two great champions Serena Williams and Andy Murray overcame Raquel Atawo and Fabrice Martin, 7-5, 6-3, to close out Centre Clay play. The dream team, which Serena wants to be called 'Murena', will continue in the third round against No. 1 seeds Nicole Melichar and Bruno Soares on Wednesday.
