Welcome to the coverage of the fifth day of Wimbledon as we approach the middle of the tournament and the number of players still at the event continues to decline.
It was another dramatic day on Thursday as Katie Boulter got the biggest win of her career when she beat Karolina Pliskova. Boulter, 118th in the world, eliminated the sixth Czech seed by 3-6 7-6 (4) 6-4 and said in his track interview that his grandmother had died earlier this week, dedicating the victory to him.
“His favorite tournament was Wimbledon,” Boulter told reporters. “That’s why it’s special to me. I watched every game that was on TV. It’s been a tough few days. I’ve tried to get my emotions out and deal with the situation, I try. And I keep my head in tennis.
“I was lucky because my grandfather managed to come down from Leicester, and so we were able to keep him company and continue to support him at the same time.”
Boulter, who has reached the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time, will then face France’s Harmony Tan. Elsewhere, Rafael Nadal and Coco Gauff booked their places in the third round and seem prepared for the deep races of the tournament.
Today, the focus will return to world number 1 Novak Djokovic, who faces his Serbian compatriot Miomir Kecmanovic. Britain’s Heather Watson opens the game on the center court in a winning match against Kaja Juvan on No. 1 court.
“Right now I’m pretty relaxed,” Watson said. “I’ve been here before. I only do it step by step, game by game. I feel like, as I get older, I’ve been touring for many years, my highs aren’t that high. High, but my bass are not so low “.