Roger Federer, Andy Murray Advance To Wimbledon Semifinals

Roger Federer and Andy Murray both won their quarterfinal matches at Wimbledon on Wednesday to advance to the next round.

Roger Federer, Andy Murray Advance To Wimbledon Semifinals

Federer continued to impress, defeating ninth-seeded Croatian Marin Cilic 6-7, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6, 6-3. After dropping the first two sets, the third-seeded, 34-year-old Swiss fought back to win the match.

Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com praised Federer:

The Swiss was as gracious in his post-match comments as he was on the court.

“I knew I was in so much trouble,” he said of falling behind, per Wimbledon on Twitter. “It was great fun playing Marin, he’s one of the nicest guys on tour, so I feel sorry for him.”

Federer then added, “I was able to sustain a high level—my legs were there, my back was there. Mentally this is going to give me a hell of a boost.”

He was the favorite to win the match, as nobody has ever won more matches than him at Grand Slam events.

SportsCenter also reported that only American Jimmy Connors has matched Federer’s record 84 wins at Wimbledon in the Open Era.

Federer finished with both more aces (27-23) and winners (67-59) in his match against Cilic. He will next face sixth-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic in Friday’s semifinal. Raonic defeated 28th-ranked American Sam Querrey 6-4, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.

Querrey defeated Novak Djokovic earlier in the tournament in what was perhaps one of the biggest upsets of the year.

Raonic controlled the match with his serve, winning 87 percent of his first-serve points while blasting 58 winners. Querrey also managed to create just two break chances in the entire match, breaking the Canadian only once, and finished with 28 unforced errors.

“I’ll give it everything and hope for a better result than last time,” Raonic said of his second trip to the semifinals. He last played in a semifinal in London in 2014, losing in straight sets to Federer.

Murray defeated 12th-ranked Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 4-6, 6-1. The second-seed Brit held off Tsonga in a tense first-set tie-breaker that Murray ultimately won, 12-10. Murray capitalized in the second set with a 6-1 win, but then dropped the following two sets. Tsonga smashed five aces in the third. However, the Brit fought back to ultimately take the match.

Finally, 10th-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych defeated 32nd-ranked Frenchman Lucas Pouille 7-6, 6-3, 6-2. After fighting hard in the opening-set tie-breaker– which he eventually won 7-4–, Berdych comfortably cruised to advance to his second Wimbledon final.

Berdych won 87 percent of his first-serve points, blasted 35 winners, benefited from Pouille’s 34 unforced errors and allowed the Frenchman just four break points and one break in the match. It was a strong showing from Berdych, who lost the 2010 Wimbledon final to Spaniard Rafael Nadal. 

“I hoped that one day I would be able to use my Wimbledon final experience again,” Berdych said after the match.

He will next face Murray in Friday’s second semifinal. Murray will be the favorite, having already won a title.

PHOTO: LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 06: Roger Federer of Switzerland plays a forehand during the Men’s Singles Quarter Finals match against Marin Cilic of Croatia on day nine of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 6, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images)