Wimbledon Championships—London, England
World No. 2 Ons Jabeur reached her first Wimbledon final after she dispatched good friend Tatiana Maria 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 in London, England on Thursday.
Needing one hour and 43 minutes to advance, Jabeur hit four aces, won 69 percent of her first serve points and broke serve on four occasions.
Becoming the first Tunisian woman to reach the finals of a Major, Jabeur will next face No. 17 seed Elena Rybakina on Saturday. Rybakina used here firepower from the back of the court to overpower former winner Simona Halep 6-3, 6-3.
Going up an early break in set one, Rybakina never looked back as she ousted the former world No. 1. Striking five aces and winning 70 percent of her first serve points, Rybakina needed just over an hour to reach the finals.
Friday’s action at Wimbledon will feature the men’s semifinals. Top seed Novak Djokovic will face home-country hero Cameron Norrie. The winner will take on Nick Kyrgios on Sunday. Kyrgios received a walkover into Sunday’s final after two-time former winner Rafael Nadal was forced to withdraw after he announced that he has a 7mm tear in his abdomen. Kyrgios will be playing in his first career Major final. He won the Australian Open doubles title earlier this year with countryman Thanasi Kokkinakis.
Nadal, who won the first two Majors of the season, was aiming to win his third in a row. He defeated No. 11 seed Taylor Fritz in a five-set thriller on Wednesday.
Semifinal Results:
(2) Ons Jabeur Defeats Tatiana Maria 62 36 61
(17) Elena Rybakina Defeats (16) Simona Halep 63 63
