(AP) — Not one top-10 seed has made the women’s quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Serena Williams will be there, though, after she moved a step closer to an eighth title at the All England Club.
Williams reached her 13th Wimbledon quarterfinal by beating Russian qualifier Evgeniya Rodina 6-4, 6-2 overnight, and never looked likely to join the parade of favourites who have been eliminated.
Serena is now 3 wins from her 24th career Slam. https://t.co/W8RHs0dHz0
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) July 9, 2018
No. 7 Karolina Pliskova became the last of the top-10 seeds to be knocked out, losing to Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands.
Since seeds were introduced in the 1920s, it’s the first time none of the top 10 women have reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. It’s also a first for any Grand Slam tournament in the 50-year professional era.
Williams is seeded 25th after returning from having a baby, but is looking like her usual dominant self on the grass courts. In a matchup of the only two mothers remaining in the draw, she jumped into a 3-0 lead in both sets and wrapped up the win in 62 minutes.
Rodina, who upset 10th-seeded Madison Keys in the previous round, broke back for 3-2 in the second set but was broken to love straight away.
“It was tougher than the scoreline,” Williams said. “I knew we were both moms, and I’m not sure how often that’s happened, if ever. So it’s really cool. You can be a mom, you can still play tennis and you can still be great.”
In the men’s tournament, Roger Federer advanced to a record-extending 16th Wimbledon quarterfinal with a 6-0, 7-5, 6-4 victory over Adrian Mannarino of France.
Serena (23), Federer (20) and Nadal (17) have a combined 60 Majors and are all on court today. We’re all lucky to still be witnessing history. pic.twitter.com/hC8rUOXe0q
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) July 9, 2018
The eight-time champion lost just five points in a 16-minute first set but faced break points for the first time in this tournament, saving all four. Federer has won 32 consecutive sets at Wimbledon to move within one straight-sets victory of breaking his previous longest streak at the All England Club, 34 in a row from the third round in 2005 to the final in 2006.
Federer next faces eighth-seeded Kevin Anderson of South Africa, who reached his first Wimbledon quarterfinal after edging Gael Monfils 7-6 (4), 7-6 (2), 5-7, 7-6 (4).
Top-ranked Rafael Nadal is also back in the quarterfinals for the first time since 2011. The Spaniard beat Jiri Vesely 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 on Centre Court to return to the last eight for the first time since 2011 when he was runner-up to Novak Djokovic. Nadal, a two-time champion at the All England Club, has yet to drop a set in this tournament.
No. 12 Djokovic, meantime, advanced over Karen Khachanov, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2, to reach his 41st Grand Slam quarterfinal, tying Jimmy Connors for second-most all-time behind Federer.
Novak Djokovic defeats Karen Khachanov in straight sets to and advances to his 41st major quarterfinal. That matches Jimmy Connors for the second-most by a man in the Open Era. Djokovic and Connors trail only Roger Federer, who has 53. pic.twitter.com/nTW1fFtX8c
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 9, 2018
Ninth-seeded Amerian John Isner, No. 13 Milos Raonic of Canada and No. 24 Kei Nishikori of Japan also advanced. Djokovic and Nishikori will meet in the quarters.
Isner rode his big serve to beat Greek teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 7-6 (8), 7-6 (4). He next faces Raonic, who defeated Mackenzie McDonald of the U.S. 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2.
Bertens hit seven aces and saved eight of the 10 break points she faced to win 6-3, 7-6 (2) against Pliskova and complete the latest upset in the women’s draw. She beat the ninth-seeded Venus Williams in the third round after coming from a break down in the third set.
Bertens next faces 13th-seeded Julia Goerges, who beat Donna Vekic of Croatia 6-3, 6-2 to secure her first Grand Slam quarterfinal appearance. Jelena Ostapenko and Dominika Cibulkova will also meet in Tuesday’s quarterfinals.
Ostapenko reached the last eight for the second straight year with a 7-6 (4), 6-0 victory over Aliaksandra Sasnovich, while Cibulkova beat Hsieh Su-Wei 6-4, 6-1.
Williams faces Camila Giorgi of Italy next, while 11th-seeded Angelique Kerber plays Daria Kasatkina of Russia.
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