We’re down to the final four men in the gentlemen’s draw, with only one of the “big four” remaining. That would of course be the most prolific men’s singles major champion of all-time, with seven Wimbledon titles to his name. We also have a former major champion who is looking for a return trip to a major final, and is playing some of the best tennis of his career. Then there’s a former Wimbledon finalist, who in the seven years since has not been able to book a return trip to a major final. Finally we have a first-time major semifinalist who has upset the number one seed for two years running at the All England Club.
Marin Cilic vs. Sam Querrey
The first of the two semifinals will feature a rarity in modern day tennis: two men who are not named Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, or Murray. Cilic has won all four of his previous meetings with Querrey. Out of those four meetings, three of them were on grass, and two of them on the lawns of Wimbledon. Their most notable battle was in the third round of Wimbledon in 2012, a five-and-a-half hour affair which is the second longest Wimbledon match ever. Cilic prevailed 17-15 in the fifth set on that day. Three years earlier, these two men also played a five set match at Wimbledon, with Cilic winning 6-4 in the fifth.
While Cilic has never lost to Querrey, they have obviously had some very tight, very long matches. That’s no surprise considering how well both of these 6’6” players can serve, especially on the grass. While both men played five set matches on Wednesday to advance to this semifinal, Querrey has now played three straight five set matches over the past week. Querrey must be a bit drained, which is not the best way to arrive to your first ever major semifinal. Marin is in great form, and has much more big match experience than Sam. It’s likely we’ll see Cilic back on Centre Court come Sunday in his second major final.
Roger Federer vs. Tomas Berdych
The second semifinal will see Roger Federer walk onto the court as the heavy favourite. This is Roger’s record-breaking 12th gentlemen’s semifinal at SW19, while this is only Tomas’ third. Federer is 10-1 in those semifinals, with his only loss coming last year to Milos Raonic in a match where Roger was injured. This is Federer’s 42nd major semifinal, and he holds a career record of 28-13 in this round. Berdych has appeared in six major semifinals, and has only prevailed in one of them. Federer leads their head-to-head 18-6, and has won all seven of their most recent meetings over the past four years. Roger is in great form in 2017 – he’s only lost two matches in the whole year, and he even held match points in those losses. He is the only man remaining who is yet to drop a set during this fortnight.
Meanwhile Berdych has struggled in 2017 – he has no titles on the year, and was in danger of dropping out of the top 20 prior to his return to the Wimbledon semifinals. With all of that being said, this match could be more dynamic match than the above statistics reveal. This is the first major in many years where Federer is such a heavy favorite, without any other members of the “big four” advancing this far. That’s a lot of pressure Roger has not recently experienced. Federer is also a few weeks shy of turning 36-years-old. As many former champions have detailed, the older you get, the more off days you have on court. Meanwhile Berdych knows he is not expected to win this match, which may allow him to hit freely. And Tomas also knows he’s capable of out-hitting Roger, just as he did in two previous major quarter-finals: the 2010 Wimbledon and the 2012 U.S. Open. Additionally Berdych should feel well-rested: he barely played for an hour in his quarter-final on Wednesday due to Novak Djokovic’s retirement. Federer is yet to be tested at this event: if Berdych can stay close and extend this to four or five sets, this may become a dangerous hurdle as Roger strives for his 11th final at the All England Club.
