The action on Day 5 of the women’s singles at Wimbledon did not disappoint. World No. 2 Coco Gauff and 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu were two of the five Grand Slam finalists to step onto the court. This article recaps the best of the action, as well as choosing the two best matches from Day 5.
Wimbledon Day 5 Women’s Recap
Who Looked Good
Last year’s US Open winner Coco Gauff progressed in straight sets for the third match in a row. The 20-year-old overcame the British qualifier Sonay Kortal. After Kortal competed impressively in the opening set, Gauff reeled off eight games in a row to run away with the contest. She won 90% of points on her first serve across both sets.
Madison Keys is also yet to drop a set so far at Wimbledon this year, after beating Marta Kostyuk 6-4 6-3. She only lost one service game in the match, meaning the American has only been broken twice in her opening three matches. The 2017 US Open runner-up will be tough for anyone to stop if she continues serving at that level.
Emma Raducanu played outstandingly to knock out the 2021 French Open semifinalist Maria Sakkari. The Briton saved all seven break points she faced in a 6-2 6-3 triumph. Despite the final score, Sakkari did not play a bad match. The Greek No. 1 simply ran into an opponent who was superb, particularly on the big points.
Jasmine Paolini’s terrific season got even better on Day 5 of Wimbledon. She defeated the 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu 7-6(7-4) 6-1 on Court 1. The recent French Open runner-up, who moved into her first fourth round at SW19, got better and better as the contest went on, with her forehand being outstanding in the second set.
Lulu Sun’s surprising run in her first Wimbledon main draw continued. She won two very close sets against Zhu Lin, claiming both on tiebreaks to triumph 7-6(7-4) 7-6(8-6). Sun’s ability to save break points was the biggest factor in deciding the match. The Australian saw off 15 of the 18 break points she faced. By contrast, Zhu only saved two of the five she faced.
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Matches of the Day
Two exciting three-set battles are picked as the best matches on Day 5 of Wimbledon. The first was a terrific battle between Paula Badosa and Daria Kasatkina, who was on an eight-match winning streak on grass heading into this contest. The Spaniard struck the ball powerfully from the beginning of the match, racing into a 5-2 lead. But in characteristic style, Kasatkina fought her way back to take the opening set into a tiebreak. Badosa then narrowly took it 8-6 to claim the opening set. Unsurprisingly, Kasatkina did not take that setback lying down. She forced a decider by winning the second set 6-4.
Kasatkina looked to be on her way to victory at 4-2 up in the third set. However, Badosa then produced some incredible hitting to overwhelm her opponent and reel off four games in a row. The final score was 7-6 4-6 6-4 in favour of the Spaniard.
Emma Navarro’s match against the recent Bad Homburg Open champion Diana Shnaider is the other contest chosen. Shnaider dominated the opening set, taking it 6-2 against a struggling Navarro. Yet, the American has already gained a reputation as one of the toughest competitors in the women’s game for a reason. After fighting to take the second set 6-3, Navarro held her nerve slightly better in a deciding set that had many twists and turns, including five breaks of serve. The crucial break came at 4-4, when Shnaider double-faulted at 30-40. Navarro served out the match very impressively in the next game to prevail 2-6 6-3 6-4, and progress to a maiden Wimbledon fourth-round.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane – USA TODAY Sports