LONDON — Tunisian Ons Jabeur, Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev of Russia, Carlos Alcaraz of Sapin and Christopher Eubanks of the US reached Wimbledon quarter-finals.
Jabeur is getting another shot at Elena Rybakina, a year after losing to her in the Wimbledon final.
It’s just the quarter-finals this time around, but the Tunisian player has to go through the defending champion to have a chance of winning her first Grand Slam tournament.
The sixth-seeded Jabeur routed two-time champion Petra Kvitova 6-0, 6-3 in the fourth round at the All England Club.
Rybakina was given an easy ride into the Wimbledon quarter-finals after Brazilian opponent Beatriz Haddad Maia retired through the first set with a back injury.
Rybakina had just broken for a 3-1 lead in the first set when the Brazilian 13th seed winced in pain and clutched her back after netting a backhand.
Maia called on the physio and kept wincing as her back was being manipulated courtside. After leaving court to receive further treatment she returned in an attempt to resume the match following a 10 minute interval.
However, the way she stiffly bent down to pick up her racket from her chair to resume the contest signalled that the match might soon be over.
She tearfully went through the motions for one more game, clutching her back after every point before shaking her head to confirm that she could no longer continue.
Sabalenka continued her march towards a second Grand Slam title this year with a comfortable 6-4 6-0 victory over Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova to power into the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
Both players were absent from the tournament last year after the grasscourt Grand Slam decided to ban players from Russia and its ally Belarus due to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a “special military operation”.
“I’m really enjoying being here,” Sabalenka said. “I’m super happy to be back and I’m really enjoying every second on court. I just want to stay as long as I can so I can enjoy the atmosphere.”
Serving with power and precision, the 2021 semi-finallist tightened her grip on the match with a solid hold and closed out the contest when fast-fading 21st seed Alexandrova sent a shot long at the baseline.
“I think it was a great match, I’m super happy with this win. She’s a really tough opponent to play,” said Sabalenka
Sabalenka, 25, who has dropped one set in the tournament so far, faces American 25th seed Madison Keys in the last eight.
“It’s always a tough battle,” said Sabalenka, who beat Keys in the Berlin last 16 in 2021 to level their tour-level head-to-head record at 1-1. “I’m really looking forward to it.”
Djokovic breached the previously impregnable defences of Hubert Hurkacz to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the 14th time.
Defending champion Djokovic, chasing a record-equalling eighth title and 24th Grand Slam, won 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (8/6), 5-7, 6-4.
In the fourth set, Djokovic broke for a crucial 4-3 lead, ending Hurkacz’s perfect run of 67 service games at the tournament this year.
Victory in his 100th match at the tournament gave Djokovic a 90th win.
Medvedev reached his first Wimbledon quarter-final when Czech opponent Jiri Lehecka retired with an injury.
Medvedev was 6-4, 6-2 ahead when his 37th-ranked opponent, who had needed a medical timeout for a right foot injury, retired from their Court One clash.
Former US Open winner Medvedev will face either Stefanos Tsitsipas, the Greek world number five, or unseeded Christopher Eubanks of the United States for a place in the semi-finals.
“I saw that his movement was restricted but I didn’t see that it was causing any real trouble,” said Medvedev.
