Carlos Alcaraz saw off Holger Rune in straight sets on Wednesday to stay on course for a Wimbledon title showdown against defending champion, Novak Djokovic.
The top seed won the key moments during the quarter-final on Centre Court to progress 7-6 (7/3), 6-4, 6-4 and will play Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals.
There was just a single break point created in the first set between the 20-year-old friends, which almost inevitably went to a tie-break.
The start of the breaker was tight but Rune’s double-fault gave Alcaraz a 4/3 lead and he won the next three points to take the first set.
It was a similar story in the second set until Rune dumped a forehand into the net in the ninth game to give the Spaniard break point.
Alcaraz made no mistake, smoking a backhand down the line to break and holding with ease to move two sets up.
The US Open champion broke again in the fifth game of the third set, giving Rune a mountain to climb.
The Danish star saved one match point on his own serve but was powerless to stem the tide as Alcaraz served out to reach his first semi-final at the All-England Club.
The Spaniard faced just one break point in the entire match, which he snuffed out, hitting 35 winners against 13 unforced errors.
The US Open champion, who now has 10 straight wins on grass, was delighted with his performance against his fellow 20-year-old.
“Honestly, it is amazing for me," said Alcaraz after beating his friend. “It’s been a dream since I started playing tennis."
“I am playing at a great level. I didn’t expect to play a great level on this surface," he said. “For me, it is crazy."
Alcaraz is the youngest semi-finalist at Wimbledon since Djokovic in 2007.
The Serbian faces Italian eighth seed Jannik Sinner in Friday’s other semi-final.
Alcaraz is aiming to become the third-youngest player to win the Wimbledon men’s singles crown in the Open Era.
If he captures his second major at the All England Club, he is guaranteed to remain as world number one.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - AFP)
