Key events
Today’s singles order of play
Centre Court (1.30pm BST)
Marta Kostyuk (Ukraine, 12) v Jasmine Paolini (Italy, 13)
Flavio Cobolli (Italy, 9) v Arthur Fery (GB)
No 1 Court (1pm)
Linda Noskova (Czech Republic, 9) v Elise Mertens (Belgium, 25)
Taylor Fritz (US, 6) v Alexander Zverev (Germany, 2)
Preamble
Hello and welcome to the Wimbledon quarter-finals – Part II!
When the 19-strong British contingent suffered a near-wipeout in the singles first round, the idea that Arthur Fery, one of the few survivors, would go on to reach the quarter-finals seemed utterly outlandish. The 23-year-old, who was born in France but grew up less than a mile from the All England Club, had won only one match at Wimbledon before this year, and only two grand slam matches in his whole career.
But his path opened up with the exits of Ben Shelton and Jakub Mensik, and now here the most local of local heroes is, only the sixth British man to reach the last eight in the open era, after four comeback wins from a set down, including against Grigor Dimitrov. And perhaps what’s been most remarkable is the calmness he’s shown throughout; he’s not been fazed by his overnight fame at all. He looks as if he believes he belongs – even when playing the man once tipped as the next Roger Federer, in front of a watching Federer.
Now Fery must face his toughest task to date, against the lightning quick Italian with the flashy forehand and charisma to match, Flavio Cobolli, who’s having the summer of his life after reaching the French Open final last month. Could Fery’s ridiculous run continue? Well, he has beaten Cobolli before, in the first round of this year’s Australian Open …
Fery and Cobolli are second on Centre Court, after Cobolli’s fellow Italian Jasmine Paolini, the runner-up of two years ago who’s thankfully rediscovered her fantastico smile and high-energy hustle, faces the increasingly impressive Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk, who’s playing for something so much bigger than herself, after yet another Russian attack on her home city of Kyiv overnight.
No 1 Court opens with Linda Noskova, the latest in a long line of classy Czechs to thrive on the grass, against Elise Mertens, the 30-year-old Belgian and reigning women’s doubles champion, who reckons this could be her final chance to go deep in the singles.
And last but not least it’s the two most in-form players in the men’s game, Alexander Zverev v Taylor Fritz. Having finally shed his “best man never to win a slam” tag in Paris, Zverev must now erase another record, having head-scratchingly lost his past seven matches against Fritz.
Play begins at: 1pm BST on No 1, 1.30pm on Centre. Stay tuned!
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