Sabalenka fights through to Wimbledon quarter-finals

Aryna Sabalenka, the top-ranked player in the world, continued her quest for a first Wimbledon title by battling past Elise Mertens to reach the quarter-finals. In a hard-fought encounter on Saturday, Sabalenka emerged victorious with a 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) win, maintaining her composure in crucial moments despite a strong challenge from her Belgian opponent.

This year's Wimbledon has seen an unusual number of upsets, with many seeded players making early exits. Sabalenka, however, has stood firm, now being the only remaining top-six seed in the women's singles draw. Her path to the quarter-finals hasn't been without its hurdles; she navigated a tricky match against British No. 1 Emma Raducanu in the previous round, setting up the highly anticipated clash with Mertens.

The match against Mertens proved to be tougher than their previous encounters, despite Sabalenka holding a dominant 9-0 head-to-head record against the 24th seed. "I am super happy with the performance. It was a battle. I was happy to get this win," Sabalenka commented after the match. "She is a great player and great person. I know how smart she is and I knew she would fight until the very end. She really challenged me today."

Sabalenka initially seemed set for a comfortable win, quickly racing to a 4-1 lead in the first set after an early break. However, Mertens demonstrated her resilience, breaking back and beginning to dictate play with aggressive baseline tennis. Although Sabalenka ultimately secured the first set, Mertens' brave play continued into the second. The Belgian earned her first break of the match early in the second set, capitalizing on Sabalenka's struggles with her first serve and unleashing a powerful backhand winner to take a 3-1 lead.

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Sabalenka, a two-time major champion, broke back two games later, but Mertens remained undeterred, pushing the set all the way to a tie-break. In the decisive tie-break, Sabalenka's class shone through. Despite falling 2-0 behind, she battled back to win the tie-break 7-4, sealing her progression to the last eight. "Everything is possible," Sabalenka stated regarding her chances of lifting the Wimbledon trophy. "I am just trying to give my best and really hope for the best."

Sabalenka's next opponent will be the unseeded German veteran Laura Siegemund, world number 104, who ended lucky loser Solana Sierra's impressive run. At 37, Siegemund is the oldest woman remaining in the singles draw. Meanwhile, 13th seed Amanda Anisimova continued her strong grass-court form, beating 30th seed Linda Noskova 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. Anisimova, who now has 10 wins in 12 outings on grass this season, will face world number 50 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a spot in the semi-finals.