Humbert knocks out Alcaraz to join Zverev and Tsitsipas in Paris Masters quarterfinals

LONDON: Novak Djokovic won a testing battle against Flavio Cobolli on Wednesday to reach a record 14th men’s Wimbledon semifinal, which will be a blockbuster clash against world number one Jannik Sinner.

The Serb, chasing a historic 25th Grand Slam singles crown, was given the royal seal of approval by Britain’s Queen Camilla before his 6-7 (6/8), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4 win on Center Court.

The seven-time champion was pushed hard by the Italian 22nd seed but ultimately had too much for the 23-year-old, who had never previously been beyond the third round of a major.

Djokovic said Wimbledon was the “most special tournament” in the sport as he was cheered by the crowd.

“And of course, it means the world to me that I’m still able at 38 to play the final stages of Wimbledon,” he said.

“Thank you for cheering for my age. I really appreciate it. It’s beautiful. Makes me feel very young.

“And I guess another thing that makes me feel very young is competing with youngsters, you know, like Cobolli today — he’s who knows how many years younger than me.”

The sixth seed prepared for the contest by meeting Camilla, the wife of King Charles III, who said she was keeping her “fingers crossed” for his match.

She watched Djokovic from the Royal Box, along with British actor Hugh Grant.

Cobolli showed early intent, mixing up his play with drop shots and heavy groundstrokes from his flashing orange racquet and unsettling his illustrious opponent.

Djokovic, who has reached every Wimbledon final since 2018, served for the first set at 5-3 but the Italian broke back and won the ensuing tie-break.

Cobolli, who has claimed titles in Bucharest and Hamburg this year, next had to answer the question of whether he could sustain his level against the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

But it was a different story in the second set as Djokovic broke twice to level the match in the evening sunshine.

The pair swapped service breaks early in the third set but Djokovic pounced again in the 11th game and thundered an ace as he took control of the match.

The fourth set was tight but Cobolli failed to put away a simple winner at the net in the ninth game.

Djokovic slipped and fell awkwardly when serving for the match, grimacing in pain, but got up to finish the job.

He played down the incident in his on-court interview.

“I had a nasty slip, but that’s what happens when you play on the grass,” he said.

“It did come at an awkward moment, but somehow I managed to find a good serve and close it out. Obviously, I’m going to visit this subject now with my physio and hopefully I’ll be well in two days.”

The Serb now owns the all-time record for most Wimbledon men’s singles semifinal appearances, moving one clear of eight-time champion Roger Federer, who reached the last four 13 times.

He has also reached a 52nd Grand Slam semifinal, extending his all-time record in the men’s game.

Djokovic is now within two wins of breaking his tie with Margaret Court for the most Grand Slam singles titles for any player, man or woman.

If he reaches and wins Sunday’s final he will also equal Federer’s record of eight men’s titles at the All England Club.

Sinner, who beat 10th seed Ben Shelton earlier Wednesday, will offer a different level of challenge.

The top seed has won his past four matches against Djokovic, beating him in straight sets in the semifinals of the recent French Open.

Carlos Alcaraz, who has beaten Djokovic in the past two finals at Wimbledon, takes on US fifth seed Taylor Fritz in the other semifinal on Friday.

LONDON: Carlos Alcaraz swept into the Wimbledon semifinals for a third successive year as the defending champion demolished Cameron Norrie, while world number one Aryna Sabalenka survived a major scare to reach the last four on Tuesday.

Alcaraz needed just 99 minutes to win 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 in his most commanding performance in this year’s tournament.

The Spanish second seed dropped four sets in a series of scrappy displays during his run to the last eight.

But Alcaraz was back to his imperious best in the quarter-finals, blasting 39 winners against the overwhelmed British world number 61, setting up a last-four clash with American fifth seed Taylor Fritz.

Alcaraz is on a career-best 23-match winning run since losing to Holger Rune in the Barcelona final in April — a superb streak which has brought him titles at the French Open, the Rome Masters and Monte Carlo.

The Spaniard, who vanquished Novak Djokovic in the last two Wimbledon finals, has won 34 of his 37 Tour-level matches on grass, while his last defeat at the All England Club came against Jannik Sinner in the fourth round in 2022.

“To be able to play another semifinal here at Wimbledon is super special,” Alcaraz said.

“It’s going to be great. I’m really happy with the way I played against a really difficult player,“

Wimbledon’s controversial line technology system malfunctioned again as Fritz beat Russian 17th seed Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7/4) to reach his first Wimbledon semifinal.

Swedish umpire Louise Azemar Engzell had to stop a point in the opening game of the fourth set on Court One when “fault” was incorrectly called after a Fritz forehand landed well inside the baseline.

The call of “fault,” rather than “out,” and positioning of the ball suggested the system was still tracking Fritz’s serve as opposed to a rally and the point had to be replayed.

Tournament organizers were forced to apologize and make a change to the system to avoid further issues after a major error in Sonay Kartal’s fourth-round defeat to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the women’s draw.

A fully automated system has replaced human line judges at Wimbledon for the first time this year, in line with the Australian Open and the US Open.

Tournament organizers claimed the system had failed to reset because the ball from Fritz’s first serve was still being retrieved when he started lining up his second.

“The player’s service motion began while the BBG (ball boy or girl) was still crossing the net and therefore the system didn’t recognize the start of the point,” an All England Club statement said.

“As such the chair umpire instructed the point be replayed.”

Sabalenka fought back from the brink of a shock exit to reach the semifinals with a gutsy 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 win against Germany’s Laura Siegemund.

She twice trailed by a break in the final set on Center Court and was two games away from crashing out before staging a dramatic revival to win in two hours and 54 minutes of unrelenting tension.

The 27-year-old top seed is through to the Wimbledon semifinals for the third time after losing at that stage in 2021 and 2023.

Beaten in the Australian and French Open finals this year after winning the US Open in 2024, Sabalenka remains on course to reach a fourth successive Grand Slam title match.

Sabalenka remains the only one of the top six women’s seeds still standing at the tournament after two weeks of shocks.

“That was a real test. I need some time to cool down and recover after this,” Sabalenka said.

In the semifinals, the Belarusian will face American 13th seed Amanda Anisimova, who defeated Russian world number 50 Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 7-6 (11/9).

Anisimova took an eight-month break from tennis in 2023 after suffering with depression brought on by the scrutiny and expectations that came from her run to the French Open semifinals aged just 17.

“It’s been an extraordinary year for me. So many highs. It’s been such a ride,” she said.