Wimbledon has proven to be a tough event for Iga Swiatek. Despite everything she’s accomplished in her career, success at Wimbledon has remained elusive. Entering Wednesday, the farthest Swiatek has ever made it at the event was the quarterfinals, a disappointing result for the former women’s No. 1.
But maybe this is Swiatek’s year. The 24-year-old will finally play in her first semifinal at Wimbledon after a victory over Liudmila Samsonova in the quarterfinals Wednesday. Swiatek looked to be in top form early during the match, which she won 6-2, 7-5.
Swiatek, the No. 8 women’s player, played a strong overall game, winning points on 70 percent of her first serves. She was strong on break points, converting 63 percent of those opportunities. Her defense was strong as well, as Swiatek registered 24 unforced errors in the match.
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Swiatek was aided by some defensive lapses from Samsonova, who picked up 38 unforced errors in the loss. Swiatek also registered 20 winners, putting Samsonova in tough positions all day.
While Samsonova had a tough time in the first set, she settled in and played a much better game in the second set, pushing Swiatek to an extra game. Despite the late surge, Samsonova couldn’t complete the comeback, falling 7-5 in the second and final set.
Following the win, Swiatek said she had goosebumps on the court.
The win puts Swiatek in the semifinal at Wimbledon for the first time in her career. Despite all her success — Swiatek has four French Open wins and one U.S. Open title — Wimbledon remains her toughest Grand Slam. She has just a 69 percent winning percentage at the tournament, her lowest among the four Grand Slams. Prior to 2025, she had just one quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon in her first five tries. She’s typically gone home early at the event.
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It will only get harder from here, though Swiatek does have an advantage over the remaining players in the women’s bracket. Of the remaining women at Wimbledon, Swiatek has never played Amanda Anisimova, but she has a winning record against all her other possible opponents. That wasn’t the case with Mirra Andreeva, who holds a 2-1 record vs. Swiatek. But that won’t be an issue after Andreeva was eliminated by Belinda Bencic on Wednesday.
Swiatek’s success extends to No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. The pair has played 13 total times, with Swiatek winning eight of them. If Swiatek can continue her run and meet Sabalenka in the final, it could result in a scenario where the women’s No. 1 is actually an underdog at Wimbledon.
Belinda Bencic upsets Mirra Andreeva in quarterfinal
It was a hard-fought match, but Belinda Bencic is advancing to the semifinal at Wimbledon. In an extremely tight match, Bencic upset No. 7 Mirra Andreeva in straight sets (7-6, 7-6) to advance at the tournament.
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The veteran Bencic played a generally mistake-free match to pick up the win. While Andreeva led the way in aces and winners, Bencic committed fewer unforced errors and played a strong game at the net to pick up the victory. Bencic had 24 unforced errors compared to Andreeva’s 37. The 28-year-old Bencic also had an 82 percent win rate on points at the net.
With the win, Bencic advances to just the second Grand Slam semifinal in her career. She reached the semifinal at the 2019 U.S. Open, where she fell to Bianca Andreescu. It also marks the farthest Bencic has advanced at Wimbledon. Prior to her 2025 run, Bencic had not advanced past the fourth round at the event in eight tries. She did not play at Wimbledon in 2024 after going on paternity leave. With her win Wednesday, Bencic is the first mother to play in the semifinal at Wimbledon since Elina Svitolina in 2023.
Bencic’s task will get much tougher next round, when she’ll take on Swiatek. The two have played four times, with Swiatek winning three of those matches.
This news was originally published on this post .
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