Murray making progress despite defeat

If you've been reading this blog then the chance are you watched Murray's match yesterday.

It may be deflating to see our No.1 hope cut down at the semi-final stage again, but you wouldn't begrudge Nadal the victory, such is his quality. And Murray's reaction in defeat is a reason for encouragement.

Murray said that he's worked on his attitude played a more aggressive gameplan, but still couldn't unsettle the world No.1. Most notably, he said he needs to improve by 10-15 per cent to close the gap on Nadal.

This is a statement of intent. It's clear that Murray is not happy to grab a blanket and bed in as world No.4. He wants more and he's willing to work for it.

Murray won't be at his wits' end after this defeat, as the step up is within sight. All the hard work on his attitude this time round has made a huge difference and saw him come into the semi-final on the back of two straight-sets victories.

Gone were the draining five-set battles we're used to, where in the past Murray has struggled to overcome lesser opponents. This time he was ruthless, despatching of Gasquet and scything down Lopez without a thought for their hardships and without losing his cool.

That in itself is progress and, if he can work as hard on the finer points of his game as he has on his mentailty in the rest of the season, then a grand slam title won't be far off.

Our Brit hopes aren't totally dead in the water for this wimbledom yet, though. Stockport's Liam Broady is currently tied one set all in the junior final. Watch this space.

Tsonga may be out, but is he Tset for Tstardom?

A little bird in the Wimble Womble house was speculating yesterday, saying, "Wouldn't it be great if Murray played Tsonga in the final!"

Based on Tsonga's performance as Queens, where he couldn't deal with Murray's game, then yes, it would have been. But based on his form at Wimbledon this last week, he'd have been a completely different prospect.

Having come back from two sets down to Roger Federer on Wednesday, he threatened to do the same against Djokovic today.
At times, the Muhammad Ali-alike looks totally devoid of technique and leaves you questioning his merit to be in the semi-finals of such a competition. Then suddenly, with giant side-steps and deft flicks of the wrist he proves that h can not only float like a butterfly, but also sting like a Mexican killer bee.

It wasn't to be today, as in the fourth set, Djokovic stood strong and stuck to his game, bullying the new boy off the court. But not without a smile. On two occasions at least, the Serb couldn't help but raise his hands and applaud the Frenchman's tenacity; once diving across court to reach one ball before leaping back up to deflect Djokovic's return back across court and win the point. Another point in the fourth set, saw Tsonga visibly measure up a lob before executing it to perfection, with Djokovic caught in no-man's land.

Tsonga may not have made the final, but if he keeps improving at this rate, he'll be a huge force in world tennis before too long.

Sharapova surges into final

It might be a second Wimbledon final for Maria Sharapova, but she's had a long, hard road back having last made it in 2004 when she won her first Grandslam title aged just 17. Shoulder troubles saw the Russian slip to No.126 in the world rankings and it wasn't clear after surgery in late 2008 whether she'd ever compete at the top level again.

Early in yesterday's tie with Sabine Lisicki, things didn't look so rosy as the wildcard raced into a 3-0 lead in the first set, the German's powerful serve proving the potent weapon it had throughout the tournament. As Sharapova settled, however, her form returned and her huge forehand started to hit the spot, she eventually came through to win 6-4, 6-3.

Fans of peace and quiet will be happy that seed No.4 Victoria Azarenka was knocked out at the hands of Petra Kvitova, meaning we'll only have the one shrieking violet in the final. The 21-year-old Czech won 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 and will be contesting her first Grandslam final on Saturday.

Tsonga in the tsemis

Another day, another shock and, while we refused to make any predictions yesterday, the words "there is no way Tsonga will beat Federer" we definitely uttered at some point in the AM.

Wrong again Mr Womble. In all honesty, we didn't see that coming, but we'll take solace in the fact that neither did anybody else. One moment, the media hacks are scribbling furiously about another Fed masterclass, the next they're rewriting their introduction along the lines of, "Is this the end of an era?"

We didn't think Tsonga had it in him, that sort of game. In the past we've only seen his power and what has seemed like lucky positioning, complemented by a huge reach. We stand corrected. The guy displayed a level of athleticism and, if lacking in deadly accuracy, then enough unpredictable creativity to challenge the biggest of names. Make no mistake that if Tsonga can do that to Federer, he'll be a tough prospect for Djokovic - especially as he is getting better with every game.

There was no such drama where our Andy Murray was concerned. Another straight sets victory to make this run to the semis uncharacteristically tranquil. Showcourt tension has been notable in its absence and we think we know what has pushed the Scot into an extra dimension...

Yes, it's his baseball cap. He's hasn't dropped a set while wearing the hat so far, so long may the sun shine on Centre Court. We noticed that after yesterday's victory, Murray flipped it round, USA style before going to sign autographs on his way off court. Was this to stop any eagle-eyed punters from grabbing the peak and swiping it from his head? After all, most of his other sweaty accessories are launched into the crowd, so why not the cap? He must know it's a good luck charm.

Murray was the only man not to drop a set in the quarters as Mardy Fish fought to snatch just the one from Rafa Nadal. The USA's No.1 couldn't capitalise on Rafa's supposed injury concerns and the Spaniard did enough to prove that he'll be no pushoever in the semi-final.

Tsonga and Tomic both holding their own

Marion Bartoli, our hot tip for the Ladies' title crashed out yesterday, mere hours after we'd pinpointed her as the 'one to watch'. Needless to say, we'll not be making any predictions today.

As we speak, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is making a fist of things against Roger Federer, he is a break up in the third set as he looks to level having comeback from two sets down. 

Djokovic and his young opponent Tomic, on the other hand, are trading blows on Court No.1 in a see-saw match that is impossible to call. The Serb is two sets to one up, but the Aussie is refusing to let him pull away.

Remember, the winners of these two games play each other in the first semi, leaving Rafa Nadal or Mardy Fish to fight for the chance to play Murray or Lopez.

Semi-finals in sight

Much in the same way that rain gets in the way of tennis, work gets in the way of blogging - but thanks to the invention of evenings and the Centre Court roof, we can now get on with both.

Sharapova earlier followed Sabine Lisicki into the next round to form the first semi-final. And now Azarenka and Paszek have decamped to Centre Court to decide who will face Petra Kvitova, who beat Pironkova to reach the second semi.

Quarter-finalists - a closer look

Maria Sharapova

Unbelievably, the Russian is still only 24, despite having turned pro in April 2001. Maria flew to her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2004, aged 17, but hasn't gone on to rack up the number of trophies expected, adding only the US Open (2006) and the Australian Open (2008) to her SW19 success, maybe thanks largely to the dominance of the Williams sisters. 

Dominika Cibulkova

Turned pro in 2005 but yet to win a title. Reached two tour finals in 2008, losing one to Maria Sharapova. The 22-year old has beaten world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki twice this year, at Brisbane in January and, of course, yesterday en route to the Wibledon quarter-final.

Marion Bartoli

La Francais has been knocking on the door of success all year having reached three semi-finals, as well as the final at Indian Wells in March. MArion already has 6 WTA tour titles, and 6 ITF titles to her name but, at 26, she is yet to snare a Grand Slam.

Sabine Lisicki

One of only two unseeded ladies left in the competition, German-born Lisicki is a wildcard entry at this year's Wimbledon but made a huge statement of intent by knocking out the French Open champ and No.3 seed Li Na in the 2nd round. Sabine hasn't dropped a set since.