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Lisicki Avoids Letdown to Gain Wimbledon Semifinal Lisicki Avoids Letdown to Gain Wimbledon Semifinal
(about 2 hours later)
WIMBLEDON, England — Unlike other giant killers at this Wimbledon, Sabine Lisicki made it stick. WIMBLEDON, England — Unlike other giant killers at this Wimbledon, Sabine Lisicki backed up her upset.
A day after ousting the overwhelming favorite Serena Williams, Lisicki deftly and quickly defeated Kaia Kanepi, 6-3, 6-3, to reach the Wimbledon semifinals for the second time in three years.A day after ousting the overwhelming favorite Serena Williams, Lisicki deftly and quickly defeated Kaia Kanepi, 6-3, 6-3, to reach the Wimbledon semifinals for the second time in three years.
“I had to make sure I came down quick enough to be ready for today,” Lisicki, the No. 23 seed from Germany, said in her postmatch interview with the BBC. “I knew from the past out of experience that needed I needed to make the switch quickly to be ready, and that’s what I did,” said Lisicki, the No. 23 seed from Germany.
She broke the unseeded Kanepi in the first game of the match and rolled from there, particularly flustering Kanepi with perfectly executed drop shots.She broke the unseeded Kanepi in the first game of the match and rolled from there, particularly flustering Kanepi with perfectly executed drop shots.
Lisicki, 23, said having been in the quarterfinals here two previous times helped her adjust for this match. Now the bettors’ favorite to win the tournament, she maintained her big smile and relaxed demeanor. Lisicki, 23, said having been in the quarterfinals here two previous times helped her adjust for this match. And her experience playing in the 2011 semifinals, when she lost to Maria Sharapova, will help her, too.
“No pressure because for me it’s just a game that I love so much, and I want to keep it that way,” she said. “I know the different atmosphere,” Lisicki said. “You know everything is starting to get empty in the locker room. It is, you know, a completely different feeling. But I’m glad that I had that experience before. I feel much fresher, fitter, better than two years ago.”
Now the bettors’ favorite to win the tournament, she maintained her big smile and relaxed demeanor.
“To have your hobby as a job is something that not a lot of people can say they have,” she said.
Others who have pulled off big upsets at this tournament were not able to follow up those victories. Steve Darcis, who defeated Rafael Nadal in the first round, withdrew from his second-round match because of a shoulder injury he sustained against Nadal. Sergiy Stakhovsky, who beat Roger Federer in the second round, lost in the next round, saying he was not prepared for dealing with the aftermath of such an upset. Michelle Larcher de Brito, who upset Maria Sharapova in the second round, was eliminated in the third round.Others who have pulled off big upsets at this tournament were not able to follow up those victories. Steve Darcis, who defeated Rafael Nadal in the first round, withdrew from his second-round match because of a shoulder injury he sustained against Nadal. Sergiy Stakhovsky, who beat Roger Federer in the second round, lost in the next round, saying he was not prepared for dealing with the aftermath of such an upset. Michelle Larcher de Brito, who upset Maria Sharapova in the second round, was eliminated in the third round.
Lisicki knows how to bounce back. Three years ago, just as she was rising up the ranks, she was sidelined for five months by an ankle injury. The injury changed her perspective.
“Three years ago when I couldn’t walk, I had to learn how to walk again, and that made me appreciate every single moment out there a lot more,” Lisicki said. “That’s why I don’t let anybody take that away from me.”
She added: “To come back on the court to compete and then to go even further than I did before the injury gives you a lot of strength.”
Even before Tuesday’s matches, one thing was certain: for the first time since the 2011 Australian Open, the women’s semifinals at a major will be without at least one of the top three players in the world: Victoria Azarenka, Williams or Sharapova. This is only the fifth time in the Open era that the top three seeds have not reached the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam event.
Despite upsets and injuries decimating the women’s draw, Lisicki has still had a challenging path to the semifinals. Of the quarterfinalists, her opponents had the highest average ranking by far, at 21. Everyone else had at least one opponent ranked outside the top 100.Despite upsets and injuries decimating the women’s draw, Lisicki has still had a challenging path to the semifinals. Of the quarterfinalists, her opponents had the highest average ranking by far, at 21. Everyone else had at least one opponent ranked outside the top 100.
The opponent does not get any easier for Lisicki. In the semifinals, she will play No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska, a 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-1 winner over No. 6 seed Li Na. Radwanska, the Wimbledon runner-up last year, is the highest seeded woman left in the draw. The opponent will not get any easier for Lisicki. In the semifinals, she will play No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska, a 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-1 winner over No. 6 seed Li Na. Radwanska, the Wimbledon runner-up last year, is the highest seeded woman left in the draw.
Even before Tuesday’s matches, one thing was certain: for the first time since the 2011 Australian Open, the women’s semifinals at a major would be without at least one of the top three players in the world: Victoria Azarenka, Williams or Sharapova. Lisicki has the benefit of having had a relatively easy quarterfinal match, finishing in 1 hour 5 minutes. Radwanska’s last three matches have taken more than two hours. Her epic quarterfinal against Li took nearly three hours and had two interruptions by rain for a total of 42 minutes. They finished the match with the Centre Court roof closed.
Li served for the first set at 5-4 and had four set points, including one where she appeared to hit an ace, but it was called out. She chose not to use a challenge, which would have shown the ball was in. Radwanska broke Li in that game and took the set in a tiebreaker.
Then came the first rain delay, which provided a reprieve for Li. Although she was broken in the third game, Li dominated the second half of the second set, winning the last four games as Radwanska struggled with her serve.
Radwanska, who was moving sluggishly in the second set, took a medical timeout after losing the second set. Her legs were massaged and her right thigh was taped. But she broke Li in the first game of the third set, and again in the fifth game. Li made Radwanska work for the win, saving seven match points in the final game.
“This is the quarterfinal of the Grand Slam, so I was really pushing myself even 200 percent to play till the end, fight till the end,” Radwanska said.
She added: “It’s not really the injury. My legs are a bit overused.”
Lisicki, who is of Polish descent, and Radwanska have known each other since they were children and played juniors tennis together.
“We played some teams championship in Poland that I think was under-10 or 12, so that was really long time ago,” Radwanska said. “You know, the time flies, and suddenly we all here playing semifinal of a Grand Slam.”
The other semifinal will feature No. 15 Marion Bartoli of France, who defeated No. 17 Sloane Stephens of the United States, 6-4, 7-5; and No. 20 Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium, who advanced to her first Grand Slam semifinal with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 8 Petra Kvitova, the 2011 champion here.