Karolina Muchova ended Naomi Osaka's inspired Wimbledon run with a 7-6(4), 6-4 victory on No 1 Court to reach her first semi-final at the All England Club. The Czech 10th seed produced a supreme serving display, landing 69% of her first serves and winning 80% of points behind it, with 44% of her first serves unreturned.
Muchova's Serving Mastery
Muchova opened her final service game with an unreturned serve and closed it with two aces, leaving Osaka helpless. "It's unbelievable," Muchova said. "I'm super happy with today's win. I played three times on this court and it was 0-3, so I was a little bit not in a good relationship with this court. We finally made it today and I got that win."
At 29, Muchova has now reached the semi-finals of all four grand slam tournaments, marking her fifth major semi-final. Her first big breakthrough came at Wimbledon in 2019 when she reached the quarter-finals after a 13-11 final-set win over Karolina Pliskova. Injuries have plagued her career, but she has finally enjoyed an extended injury-free stretch.
Osaka's Missed Opportunity
Osaka, the 14th seed, played with none of the freedom she showed in her fourth-round defeat of world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka. She was erratic off the ground, especially with her forehand, which crumbled in the first-set tie-break. At 4-4 in the second set, she struck two double faults to hand over the decisive break.
"This one is a little more upsetting to me because I feel like there was so much more I could have done," Osaka said. "I think maybe I should find the positive in that because I've gotten to the quarters and I feel like I can still improve so much as a player. In my head I think there's still an opportunity to win a slam."
Semi-Final Showdown with Gauff
Muchova now faces Coco Gauff, the seventh seed, in the semi-final. Gauff dominated their head-to-head, winning their first six matches, but Muchova won her first match against the American in Stuttgart three months ago. Grass offers Muchova a surface advantage, but she must overturn a historically difficult match-up.
"I'm appreciating definitely more the time that I'm here, that I can play, that I don't have these big issues that I had in the past," Muchova said. "I'm also happy that I now am like selling my game, I would say, and that I can use it. I'm healthy, which I don't like to say – touch wood – I would say I'm more appreciative and enjoying the moment that I'm here, I can play, all that."
