
Djokovic steps up bid for Wimbledon history, Sinner strolls into round three
But there was heartbreak for home favourite Jack Draper as he crashed out to former finalist Marin Cilic.
Djokovic avoided becoming one of the host of big names eliminated in week one in south London as the Serb needed just one hour and 47 minutes to dispatch Evans in a 6-3, 6-2, 6-0 victory on Centre Court.
"It means I've been playing quite a long time!" Djokovic said when told he had just secured his 99th Wimbledon match victory.
"I still enjoy it. This court has given me so much. Wimbledon has a special place in my heart. Any history made here is obviously extra special."
Djokovic is dreaming of putting an exclamation point on his incredible career by becoming the most successful singles player in tennis history.
The 38-year-old has been tied with Margaret Court on 24 Grand Slam titles since winning his most recent major prize at the 2023 US Open.
Despite losing the last two Wimbledon finals to Carlos Alcaraz, Djokovic believes the lawns of south-west London provide his best chance to win that elusive 25th major.
"I'm aware of the history on the line. I'm thinking about the big things I can do in this tournament," he said.
Sinner is yet to reach a Wimbledon final, but the US and Australian Open champion has been ruthless in dropping just 12 games in his opening two matches.
The Italian thrashed Australia's Aleksandar Vukic 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 to set up a third round clash against Spaniard Pedro Martinez.
"We saw there have been so many upsets this tournament so we try to stay focused and raise our level," said Sinner.
Draper's dream of following in the footsteps of Andy Murray as a British champion were dashed as 36-year-old Cilic rolled back the years.
The Croatian, who is making his first Wimbledon appearance for four years after major knee surgery, blasted 53 winners in a 6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 victory.
"The emotions I'm feeling are incredible," said Cilic, who lost the final to Roger Federer at the All England Club in 2017.
"It's been a long journey but I never lost any doubt. This was a huge challenge, to come back and play at this level against Jack, in front of this crowd."
Only one of the top five seeds in the women's draw – world number one Aryna Sabalenka – is still standing.
But defending champion Barbora Krejcikova and five-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek avoided joining the big name casualties with hard-fought three-set wins.
Krejcikova has had a miserable time with injuries this year and arrived at Wimbledon with just six matches under her belt in 2025.
Despite not feeling 100 percent, she overcame American Caroline Dolehide 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 to set up a meeting with Emma Navarro.
"Definitely a huge relief," said the Czech. "I wasn't feeling that well but I was fighting for every ball. I'm really happy I won the third set."
Swiatek has previously struggled on Wimbledon's lush lawns despite being a former junior champion at the All England Club.
The former world number one dropped the first set to American Caty McNally before roaring back to win 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.
"For sure second and third set I played how I wanted to play," said Swiatek.
Elena Rybykina, Wimbledon winner in 2022, demolished Maria Sakkari 6-3, 6-1.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New Straits Times
36 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
No. 6 Madison Keys, Naomi Osaka shown Wimbledon exit
RUSSIA's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova rallied to reach the Round of 16 at Wimbledon on Friday with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 win against Japan's Naomi Osaka. Pa vlyuchenkova raced to 3-0 leads in each of the last two sets and held off the four-time Grand Slam winner in two hours and three minutes. Osaka struck 15 aces but saved only three of eight break points. It was her fourth consecutive loss in matches that went to three sets. "I have nothing positive to say about myself," Osaka said after the match. "I'm just going to be a negative human being today. I'm so sorry. I have nothing positive to say about myself, which is something I'm working on." Osaka finished with more winners (33-31) and fewer unforced errors (35-27). "It's not like I can really even be mad at myself," Osaka said. "I was thinking about the break points that I had. She hit some really good serves. Then she hit a backhand. I can't really do that much about it." Pavlyuchenkova, 34, reached her first grass-court semifinal last week at Eastbourne and is attempting to reach the quarterfinals at a major for the 10th time. Standing in her way is home hopeful Sonay Kartal, who came from 4-1 down in the first set to defeat French qualifier Diane Parry 6-4, 6-2. Germany's Laura Siegemund knocked out No. 6 seed Madison Keys 6-3, 6-3 in just 94 minutes. Keys won just one of the 19 points on her second serve and Siegemund converted five of 13 break chances. Keys finished with 31 unforced errors and 16 winners, compared to 11 unforced errors and 19 winners for Siegemund. Siegemund, 37, made it past the third round for the first time at Wimbledon. "I only play for myself. I don't feel like I need to prove anything anymore," Siegemund said during her on-court interview. "It's important to remember the core of why you are doing this. ... I'm playing for me, and I don't feel pressure this way." Siegemund's next opponent will be Argentina's Solana Sierra, who defeated Spain's Cristina Bucsa 7-5, 1-6, 6-1. Sierra became the first lucky loser to reach the fourth round in the women's singles at Wimbledon in the Open era (since 1968). Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus moved on to the Round of 16 with a 7-6 (8), 6-4 victory over local favorite Emma Raducanu of Great Britain. Sabalenka was pushed hard in the first set before eventually winning in a tiebreaker. She then trailed 4-1 in the second set before winning the final five games of the match. "It was a battle," Sabalenka said. "She really pushed me to the limit today. I'm super happy with the win." With Keys' loss on Friday, Sabalenka is the only top-six seed remaining in the women's draw. "It definitely gives me a lot of energy and good feeling that I was under pressure, it was a great match, it was a great battle, and I was able to get the win," Sabalenka said. "That's why I love sport. It's all about challenging yourself. When you go through tough challenges and you get the win, it's the best feeling." Sabalenka will next face No. 24 Elise Mertens of Belgium. Mertens saved 5 of 6 break points during a 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory over Elina Svitolina of Ukraine. Sabalenka and Mertens are former doubles partners and won the 2019 U.S. Open and 2021 Australian Open together. Sabalenka has won their past nine singles matchups and is 10-2 overall. No. 13 seed Amanda Anisimova overcame eight double faults and held off Hungary's Dalma Galfi 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.


The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Sabalenka douses Raducanu fire to reach fourth round
ARYNA Sabalenka looked shaken and stirred on Friday as it appeared she would become the most high-profile name to join the mass exodus of Wimbledon seeds before her survival instincts kicked in to secure a 7-6(6) 6-4 third-round win over Emma Raducanu. Wimbledon fans are no strangers to floodlit blockbusters featuring British home favourites, with Andy Murray providing plenty of late-night thrills under a closed Centre Court roof during his stellar career. On Friday, after being kept waiting till 8 pm local time (1900 GMT) to take centre stage, it was Raducanu's turn to provide the drama as she played some electrifying tennis to surge into a 4-2 lead in the first set and was again up 4-1 in the second. Unfortunately for Raducanu, getting over the finishing line proved a step too far. 'She played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard. To get this win, I had to fight for every point like crazy,' the world number one told the crowd after improving her record over British opponents to 9-0. 'She was making me move a lot, serving well and playing great tennis from the baseline. I was just trying to stay focused and put as many balls as I could on her side. I just tried to put all of the pressure on her.' The 22-year-old Raducanu kept the Belarusian guessing with her breathtaking shot-making that earned her a break in the fifth game to the delight of the 15,000-strong crowd who roared on every Raducanu winner and cheered on every Sabalenka error. Although Sabalenka, the sole survivor among the top six women's seeds, gained back the break, she was left shell-shocked when she missed seven set, and break, points at 5-4 on Raducanu's serve, with the Briton serving her way out of trouble. At the eighth time of asking, in the tiebreak, Sabalenka finally silenced the crowd when she produced a stop volley to bag the set, her achievement being greeted by only a smattering of applause. Raducanu, who has spent a long time in the tennis wilderness following her mind-boggling win at the U.S. Open in 2021 as a qualifier, wanted to prove that she was back to her best by following up her win over 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova with victory over Sabalenka. When she surged into a 4-1 lead in the second, and even had a break point to take a 5-1 lead, it seemed that she had it in her grasp to drag the contest into a deciding set. But just as the spectators on Centre Court, and the thousands more cheering on from a heaving Henman Hill, started believing that Raducanu had the momentum, and the weapons, to pull off an improbable win against an opponent who has contested the last three Grand Slam finals, reality struck. Sabalenka turned on the power to win the last five games to extinguish Raducanu's hopes of reaching the fourth round for the third time, with the Briton netting a service return on match point. 'What an atmosphere. My ears are still hurting, honestly. It was super loud! Every time you were cheering her, I was trying to tell myself to just pretend that you were just cheering for me. I had goosebumps honestly, so thank you for the atmosphere,' said the top seed, who will next face Belgium's Elise Mertens.


The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Tennis-Sabalenka douses Raducanu fire to reach fourth round
Tennis - Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 4, 2025 Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka celebrates winning her third round match against Britain's Emma Raducanu REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq LONDON (Reuters) -Aryna Sabalenka looked shaken and stirred on Friday as it appeared she would become the most high-profile name to join the mass exodus of Wimbledon seeds before her survival instincts kicked in to secure a 7-6(6) 6-4 third-round win over Emma Raducanu. Wimbledon fans are no strangers to floodlit blockbusters featuring British home favourites, with Andy Murray providing plenty of late-night thrills under a closed Centre Court roof during his stellar career. On Friday, it was Raducanu's turn to provide all the drama as she surged to a 4-2 lead in the first set and was again up 4-1 in the second. The 22-year-old kept her Belarusian opponent guessing with her breathtaking shot-making that earned her a break in the fifth game to the delight of the 15,000-strong crowd who roared on every Raducanu winner and cheered on every Sabalenka error. Although Sabalenka, the sole survivor among the top six women's seeds, gained back the break, she was left shell-shocked when she missed seven set, and break, points at 5-4 on Raducanu's serve, with the Briton serving her way out of trouble. At the eighth time of asking, in the tiebreak, Sabalenka finally silenced the crowd when she produced a stop volley to bag the set, her achievement being greeted by only a smattering of applause. Raducanu, who has spent a long time in the tennis wilderness following her remarkable win at the U.S. Open in 2021 as a qualifier, wanted to prove that she was back to her best by following up her win over 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova with victory over Sabalenka. When she surged into a 4-1 lead in the second, and was one point away from taking a 5-1 lead, it seemed that she might pull off one of the most improbable wins against an opponent who has contested the last three Grand Slam finals. But it was not meant to be as Sabalenka turned on the power to win the last five games and extinguish Raducanu's hopes of reaching the fourth round for the third time, with the Briton netting a service return on match point. The top seed will next face Belgium's Elise Mertens. (Reporting by Pritha Sarkar, editing by Clare Fallon)