The 2018 Wimbledon men’s semifinals are now set. After Wednesday’s quarterfinal matches, we will see Novak Djokovic against Rafael Nadal and John Isner against Kevin Anderson.
Wimbledon men’s semifinals now set: Nadal vs. Djokovic, Isner vs. Anderson
Roger Federer, Juan Martin del Potro, Kei Nishikori, and Milos Raonic were taken down in the quarterfinals, and only four remain.
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Nadal vs. Juan Martin del Potro was the final match to wrap up on Wednesday, and it went all five sets, an instant classic between two of the best players in the world. With del Potro down in the fifth set, he and Nadal fought back-and-forth in a game that saw del Potro lose three break point chances and lasted nearly 15 minutes alone.
In the end, Nadal won the match, 7-5, 6-7(7), 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.
Roger Federer was the favorite by most, but he ran into the hard-serving Anderson, who is doing incredibly well on the grass courts of Wimbledon this year. He needed five sets, and a fifth set that was prolonged, but Anderson won, 2-6, 6-7(6), 7-5, 6-4, 13-11. Many were hoping for a final between Nadal and Federer, 10 years after their legendary 2008 final.
Anderson will face another towering hard server in Isner, who went four sets with the 13-seeded Milos Raonic before getting the win, 6-7(5), 7-6(7), 6-4, 6-3. Isner is the ninth seed and this is his first ever appearance in a Grand Slam semifinal. Expect a lot of serves being held in that one.
Djokovic, the 12th seed, has looked phenomenal thus far in his run through Wimbledon, and that’s important given his recent history. When Djokovic isn’t the best tennis player in the world, he’s struggling to find his confidence and has made multiple attempts to “fix” whatever is wrong with him over the past year-plus.
He looked as good as advertised in the four-set victory over Kei Nishikori, the 24th seed, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. Nishikori fought hard, but Djokovic has looked like a man possessed and he will enter the semifinal against Nadal with less wear on him from the quarterfinals.
Federer skipped the clay court season, same as he did a year ago, to keep himself fresh for Wimbledon. He looked good throughout the tournament, but Anderson proved to be too much in the end.
The men’s semifinals are set for Friday, with the final on Sunday, the last day of Wimbledon. You can find the full bracket, schedule, and results for the men’s singles bracket here.
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