British No 1's will be on a mission at Wimbledon
Wednesday 12 July 2017 16:02, UK
Johanna Konta and Andy Murray will be flying the British flag at Wimbledon this week, but can they make the dream a reality?
Sixth seed Konta boosted her credentials as a title contender with a tough fourth-round victory over 21st seed Caroline Garcia, while defending champion Andy Murray reached a 10th successive Wimbledon quarter-final with victory over Benoit Paire as hopes of glory in the second week remain intact.
Konta, installed as the woman to beat following defeats for Petra Kvitova and Karolina Pliskova, faces a grudge match against world No 1 chasing Simona Halep on Tuesday, while Murray faced Sam Querrey, who he leads 7-1 in career meetings, for a place in the semi-finals on Wednesday.
"Everyone in the draw is in with a chance of taking the title - I think I'm pretty sure favourites also come and go," said Konta.
"They change daily almost. I'm just here, happy to have actually made it into the second week, happy to come through three battles this week."
Konta's opponent on Friday, Maria Sakkari believes she has "a great chance" of winning the title. The Greek youngster acknowledged she was beaten by the better player, who extended her burgeoning reputation among WTA's top talent as a huge server and an even bigger-hitter than the great Serena Williams.
"She's serving very good, not making a lot of mistakes, she's making plenty of winners and if she continues playing like that then she has a lot of chances to win the title," said Sakkari. "People say she hits five miles per hour harder than Serena did last year - I obviously felt it."
Great Britain has quarter-finalists in both the men's and women's singles for the first time since 1973 when Roger Taylor and Virginia Wade were flying the flag.
Konta hopes to become the first British woman to win the Wimbledon crown since Wade in 1977 while Murray is aiming to become the first Briton to successfully defend a Grand Slam title since Fred Perry at the tournament from 1934-1936 and the dream is very much alive and kicking.
It would be the first time in the Open era that a British man and woman could win singles' titles in the same year at Wimbledon. In fact, there hasn't been a British double at the All England Club, or at any Grand Slam event, since Fred Perry and Dorothy Round Little danced the night away in 1934.
Murray's path to the last four opened up with the elimination of Stan Wawrinka, Nick Kyrgios and Lucas Pouille. But having come into the tournament amid concerns about a right hip problem, the Scot has limped through the week and admitted he struggled with his movement against Fognini.
While Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic have looked strong through the opening rounds, Murray could find himself up against another player who has impressed early on in Spain's Rafael Nadal. The pair are seeded to meet in the semi-finals.
These four players have shared the Wimbledon title between them for the last 14 years but have never all been in the semi-finals in the same year.
"I'm pleased obviously to be in the second week. Anything can happen from here," said Murray on Friday.
If Konta were to progress to the quarter-finals then either second seed Simona Halep or two-time Grand Slam winner Victoria Azarenka will be waiting before a potential last-four clash against French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko or five-time Wimbledon winner Venus Williams.
With the top half of the draw containing world No 1 Angelique Kerber and former runner-up Garbine Muguruza, Konta won't be fearing anyone in her line of fire.
Just imagine? We could be sitting here next weekend watching a little bit of history being made. There's a long way to go yet, but we can always dream of a fairy-tale ending.
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