Sabalenka Beats Raducanu as Keys and Osaka Exit Wimbledon

Photo: Reuters

The Wimbledon tournament saw an exciting and dramatic day on Friday as Aryna Sabalenka, the women's top seed, had to fight extremely hard to beat Britain's Emma Raducanu in front of a loud and supportive Centre Court crowd. Sabalenka kept her dream of winning Wimbledon alive, but for two other Grand Slam champions, Madison Keys and Naomi Osaka, their journey in this tournament came to an end.

Sabalenka Wins a Tough Match Against Raducanu

Aryna Sabalenka, who is from Belarus, played against British favourite Emma Raducanu in a match that was full of energy and strong hitting. The match was played under the Centre Court roof, and the crowd was cheering loudly for Raducanu. Sabalenka had to use all her power and skills to win the first set. She needed eight set points to finally win it.

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After winning the first set, Sabalenka found herself in trouble in the second set as Raducanu took a 4-1 lead and even had a chance to make it 5-1. However, Sabalenka did not give up. She fought back strongly, winning important points and showing why she is the top seed in the tournament. In the end, Sabalenka won the match on her third match point.

After her victory, Sabalenka told the crowd, "Wow! What an atmosphere, my ears are still hurting, it was super loud." She also praised Raducanu, saying, "Emma played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard to get this win. I had to fight for every point to get this win."

Alcaraz Moves Closer to His Third Wimbledon Title

Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, who has already won Wimbledon twice, also played his match on Friday. He faced Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff and won in four sets with scores of 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Even though Alcaraz won, he admitted that the match was tough for him. He said, "I was suffering in every service game... 0-30s and breakpoints down. It was stressful. Every time he could push me, he did. I was trying to survive."

Alcaraz has now won 21 matches in a row and is looking strong to win his third Wimbledon title. His next match will be against Russia's Andrey Rublev, who defeated French player Adrian Mannarino in straight sets.

Big Upsets as Keys and Osaka Are Knocked Out

Friday also saw two big upsets as Madison Keys and Naomi Osaka lost their matches and were knocked out of the tournament. Madison Keys, who is the sixth seed and also the Australian Open champion, lost her match, and four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka also failed to reach the next round.

With their exit, Sabalenka remains the only top-10 seed left in the top half of the women’s draw. There are only three top-10 seeds remaining in the bottom half as well, which makes Sabalenka one of the strong favourites to win this year.

British Players Make Fans Happy

Even though Raducanu lost her match, British tennis fans still had reasons to celebrate on day five. Sonay Kartal, another British player, played an amazing match against French qualifier Diane Parry. Kartal was losing 4-1 in the first set but then won nine games in a row to win the match 6-4, 6-2. She will now play against Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the next round.

Britain’s Cameron Norrie also kept the home fans happy by winning his match against Italian player Mattia Bellucci. Norrie won in straight sets with scores of 7-6(5), 6-4, 6-3. His next match will be against Chilean qualifier Nicolas Jarry, who beat Brazilian player Joao Fonseca in four sets.

Americans Celebrate Wins on Fourth of July Weekend

American players also had a good day at Wimbledon. Taylor Fritz, who is the fifth seed, defeated Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in four sets with scores of 6-4, 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-1. Fritz had to play long matches in the first two rounds, spending more than nine hours on court, but after this match he said, "My body is actually feeling better after each match. I feel like somehow it felt the worst after my first round but now it's getting better."

Amanda Anisimova, who is seeded 13th, also won her match against Hungarian player Dalma Galfi with scores of 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 to reach the fourth round.

Ben Shelton, another American player, had to continue his second-round match on Friday after it was stopped late on Thursday. Shelton was about to serve for the match when it was stopped. On Friday, he finished the match in just one minute by hitting three aces and an unreturned serve to win.

French Players Have Mixed Results

French player Gael Monfils, who is 38 years old, had to continue his match on Friday but he lost to Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics in five sets with scores of 6-4, 1-6, 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4. Monfils said after his loss, "I don't really know. I wish I could win this match today but that's sport. I'm going to rest a couple of days and go back on court and try to be ready for the US tour."

Monfils’s wife, Elina Svitolina from Ukraine, also lost her match. She was beaten by Belgium's Elise Mertens in straight sets with scores of 6-1, 7-6(4).

What’s Next at Wimbledon

With so many top players out of the tournament, Aryna Sabalenka might be feeling that this could be her year to win her first Wimbledon title. She already has two Australian Open titles and one US Open title, and she hopes to add the Wimbledon trophy to her collection.

The matches are getting tougher as the tournament moves into the second week. Fans are excited to see if Carlos Alcaraz can win his third Wimbledon title in a row or if a new champion will rise this year.