3 players to advance to Wimbledon 2024 QF after receiving walkovers ft. Elena Rybakina
The slippery grass at Wimbledon has claimed many victims in the past, and it was no different this year. World No. 7 Hubert Hurkacz was one of the first casualties of the tournament as he hurt himself during his second-round match against Arthur Fils, and had to retire.
The often-injured Thanasi Kokkinakis' poor luck with health issues continued at SW19 as well. He was forced out of the tournament after he slipped and injured himself during his second-round duel against Lucas Pouille. The Frenchman himself gave a walkover after that as he withdrew from the event due to an abdominal injury.
On the women's side, Camila Osorio retired minutes into her second-round match against Beatriz Haddad Maia. Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, who stunned defending champion Marketa Vondrousova in the first round, saw her dream run come to an end in the third round. Lower back issues led to her throwing in the towel towards the end of her match.
Retiring during any stage of the tournament is heartbreaking but having to do so when one is so close to the finish line is even worse. On that note, here's a look at three players who made quarterfinals at this year's Wimbledon at the expense of their opponent's mid-match retirement:
#1 - Elena Rybakina
Rybakina won her maiden Major title at the All England Club two years ago. She reached the fourth round here this year with a 6-0, 6-1 beatdown of Caroline Wozniacki in the third round. Anna Kalinskaya stood between her and a spot in the quarterfinals.
Rybakina captured the first set, and quickly went up 3-0 in the second set. Sadly, Kalinskaya was hindered by an injury, and called it quits at that point, thus sending the Kazakh into the last eight.
Rybakina has reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the third year in a row. She will next take on Elina Svitolina for a spot in the semifinals on Wednesday (July 10). The Ukrainian has made the semifinals here twice in the past, including last year. She beat World No. 1 Iga Swiatek to do so, and could give the Kazakh a tough time as well.
#2 - Daniil Medvedev
Fireworks were expected when Medvedev took on Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round on Sunday (July 7). However, the match ended on an unfortunate note as the Bulgarian was forced to call it quits after a nasty fall.
Dimitrov slipped in the fifth game of the first set and took a medical time-out after that to treat his knee. He tried to soldier on for three more games before he decided to retire lest he worsened the injury.
Medvedev thus advanced to his second consecutive Wimbledon quarterfinal, where he will face World No. 1 Jannik Sinner. The former won their first six encounters, while the latter has won their last five.
Sinner rallied from two sets down to beat him in the Australian Open final earlier this year. It hasn't been easy to beat him but Medvedev will be keen to have another go at him to snap his losing skid against the Italian.
#3 - Jasmine Paolini
Paolini and Madison Keys reached the fourth round of Wimbledon without losing a set. An engaging battle was on the cards given their form, and they certainly delivered until the match took a turn for the worse towards the very end.
Paolini nabbed the first set to race ahead but Keys found her groove in the second set. She led 5-1 before the Italian managed to even the score but nipped her comeback in the bud as she came out on top in the tie-break.
Keys raced to a 5-2 lead in the decider but Paolini started to mount another comeback. She nabbed the next two games to make it 5-4, at which point the American took a medical time-out.
Keys looked quite hampered upon her return, and was unable to move or hit her shots properly. She got broken once again, and decided to retire after that. The American later posted an update stating that she injured her hamstring, and will know the extent of the injury after further tests.
As for Paolini, she's through to her maiden Wimbledon quarterfinal, and her second at a Major. She will face Emma Navarro, who eliminated Coco Gauff in the previous round, for a spot in the semifinals.