Aryna Sabalenka Advances to Wimbledon Quarterfinals After Hard-Fought Victory
Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one, achieved a hard-fought victory with scores of 6-4, 7-6 (4) over Elise Mertens to secure her place in the Wimbledon quarterfinals. Sabalenka, who has won two Grand Slam doubles titles with Mertens, has reached the quarterfinals in her last 11 appearances in major tournaments. Since the year 2000, only Serena Williams surpasses this streak in women’s tennis, with 16 consecutive quarterfinals between 2000 and 2005. In the match on the center court, Sabalenka came with a favorable record of 10 wins in 12 matches against Mertens. Initially, she seemed to be heading for an easy victory by leading 4-1, but Mertens reacted to tie the first set. Sabalenka finally secured the break with a powerful cross-court backhand, winning the first set.The second set was decided in a tiebreak, where Sabalenka has proven to be almost unbeatable in 2025, not losing one since February in Doha. This year, her record in tiebreaks is 16-1, which allowed her to seal her pass to the quarterfinals.
In the next round, Sabalenka will face Laura Siegemund, the 37-year-old German tennis player, who advanced after defeating Solana Sierra with a score of 6-3, 6-2. Siegemund became the oldest woman to reach her first Wimbledon quarterfinal. During an on-court interview, upon mentioning her age, the audience applauded, and Siegemund joked: “It’s not very common to receive a compliment for being older.”I am very happy with my performance. It was a battle. She always plays great tennis and I am glad to have achieved this victory. It is difficult to play against someone you know well, and she is a great player, a great person. It is complicated to face her. I know she will fight until the end and try to find something. She really challenged me today.
Aryna Sabalenka
