LONDON (AP) — Marta Kostyuk reached her first Wimbledon quarterfinals by beating qualifier Ashlyn Krueger 6-4, 6-4 with record eight-time men's singles champion Roger Federer among Monday's visitors at the All England Club.
The 24-year-old Ukrainian, a French Open semifinalist, improved to 10-0 this season against players from the United States. Krueger had come into the match on No. 2 Court with a 16-1 record on grass this season.
“Today was a very difficult day, very hot,” Kostyuk said on court. “The longer you stay on this surface, actually the worse you feel. (It) was big fight, difficult conditions, super windy today.”
After mild weather in the first week at the grass-court major, the temperature was expected to rise to 31 C (88 F) on Monday.
Kostyuk, who twirled after her win, will next face either Alexandra Eala or Jasmine Paolini — those two are up first on Centre Court.
The 21-year-old Eala ousted defending champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday. No other player from the Philippines has come this far in a Grand Slam singles tournament in the Open era, according to the women's professional tour.
Besides Federer, six-time women's singles champion Billie Jean King posted that she was headed to the Royal Box. Also on hand was Formula 1 racer Kimi Antonelli, who leads the drivers' standings despite a disappointing result in Sunday's British Grand Prix.
Later on Centre Court, it's a battle of men's wild cards when Grigor Dimitrov faces Arthur Fery — the 23-year-old British player who grew up just five minutes from the All England Club. In the nightcap, second-seeded Alexander Zverev tries to reach Wimbledon quarterfinals for first time when he faces Jiri Lehecka.
On No. 1 Court, sixth-seeded Taylor Fritz of the U.S. was facing 10th-seeded Alexander Bublik for a spot in the quarterfinals.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
The Associated Press
