Aryna Sabalenka has powered into the semi-finals of Wimbledon after battling past Laura Siegemund on Centre Court.
The number one seed at Wimbledon this year, WTA number one Sabalenka defeated Siegemund 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
Sabalenka thanked the Wimbledon crowd after her quarter-final victory, which she secured after two hours and 54 minutes.
She has now earned a final four spot at the All England Club, and has also become the first player to qualify for the WTA Finals Riyadh.
Sabalenka revealed inspiration from Novak Djokovic ahead of her latest match, having also trained with the ATP legend before Wimbledon.
Tracy Austin suggests what Novak Djokovic told Aryna Sabalenka in Wimbledon practice
And former world number one Tracy Austin believes she knows what Sabalenka and Djokovic discussed in the aftermath of their practice in London.
She said on BBC: “I think Sabalenka learned a lot from that Roland Garros final where she really was rattled.
“She lost in three sets to Coco Gauff. It was so windy, she did not handle the breezy conditions as well as Coco did.
“I also think when she practiced with Novak and they stayed on the court for an extra half an hour and Novak talked to Aryna, they won’t tell us exactly what was said, but she said most of it was mental. I think Novak is telling her you have got to stay more calm. Keep that energy!”
Billie Jean King says what is ‘so hard’ for Aryna Sabalenka as she reaches Wimbledon semi-final
Sabalenka was evidently frustrated by Siegemund throughout their battle, but ultimately showed great determination and patience to grind out the win.
It involved twice coming back from a break down in the deciding set against the German, who had previously never made it past the second round at Wimbledon.
Her attitude was also discussed by tennis legend Billie Jean King post-match, who followed Austin with the comments: “That’s the one thing everyone always watches for, Sabalenka is playing. Let’s see how she feels.
“Let’s see how moody she is. Let’s see how excitable she gets. She is trying so hard. She wants to win here so badly, you can just see it.
“Everything just oozes from her pores. She knows deep down to do that she has to stay in the process. One ball at a time, staying more even emotionally.
“It is so hard for her but that’s what makes her great too. She has that emotion she can call on if she needs it.”
The Belarusian’s approach is clearly working, with Sabalenka having reached the final in each of the last three Grand Slams.
She managed to beat Jessica Pegula at the US Open, but did lose to Madison Keys and Coco Gauff at the Australian Open and French Open respectively.
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