Bertens had all the credentials to create an upset following her run to the semi-finals of last month’s French Open, which included a first-round victory over Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber.
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That said, Halep represents a formidable challenge for the 28-year-old.
“I have had a great year so far”.
Upping her game a notch from Monday’s fourth-round display in which she lost just four games in beating Japan’s Misaki Doi, Kerber began to dominate the long baseline rallies as the second set progressed, forcing Halep to chase down ball after ball.
The fifth-seeded Japanese player was trailing 6-1, 5-1 when he chose to stop the match, giving Cilic a spot in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
If Federer gets to the final, he could face No. 2-seeded Andy Murray, who handily defeated No. 15 Nick Kyrgios 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 in the last match on Centre Court to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the ninth successive year.
Serena Williams will continue her quest for a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title when she faces Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the Wimbledon quarter-finals on Tuesday.
The oldest man left is Roger Federer, who turns 35 on August 8, and he looked in fine form after two days of rest, easily dismissing unseeded American Steve Johnson 6-2, 6-3, 7-5.
Kerber didn’t let Doi enjoy a similar opportunity as she earned an easy 6-3, 6-1 win.
Vesnina made her first semifinal at a major, by seeing off bride-to-be Cibulkova, the Slovak 19th seed, 6-2, 6-2.
The Australian Open champion fired 23 winners and managed to keep Halep on the back foot throughout.
Third-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska has lost at Wimbledon, falling to Dominika Cibulkova 6-3, 5-7, 9-7 in the fourth round. “I think that is a lot of matches”, she said.
“When I came onto the tour the two Williams sisters were always the top favorites but in the meantime I have won against them both and so the respect is there”, the German said.
Her opponent, two-time major champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, sent a shot flying past Williams to go up a break at 5-4 in the opening set.
Women’s semifinals Thursday: Serena Williams vs. Vesnina, Venus Williams vs. Kerber. And even the tiebreaker, it seemed like she was going to win it, and somehow walked out of that with the set. But it was Kerber who played the big points better, capturing the final two games of the set and taking a 5-3 lead in the second.
Missing from the schedule is No. 1 Novak Djokovic, whose 30-match Grand Slam-winning streak was snapped by Sam Querrey in the third round on Saturday.
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At 29, Kerber – a semi-finalist in 2012 too – believes she is playing the finest grasscourt tennis of her career.
