Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova wins despite being robbed of a point due to line-calling technology failing. Photo: AFP
Unseeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova recovered from being robbed of a crucial point by an automated line-calling malfunction to beat Britain's Sonay Kartal 7-6(3) 6-4 to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the second time.
The Russian former French Open runner-up was left fuming after falling victim to a clear mistake when she held game point at 4-4 on serve in the opening set under the Centre Court roof.
Instead, she dropped serve to fall 5-4 behind, claiming the game had been 'stolen', but showed all of her vast experience to save a set point in the next game and break back before later going on to dominate the tiebreak with some attacking play.
Striking her heavy groundstrokes into the corners, she kept the bustling 23-year-old Kartal on the run for much of the contest and when Pavlyuchenkova won three games in a row from 2-1 down in the second set she finally began to seize control.
Kartal, the last remaining Briton in the women's singles, showed great tenacity to push her opponent hard but the Russian held her nerve at 5-4 to seal an impressive win.
"I always thought I was not good enough on grass, so this is incredible for me. Especially with me getting older, I am so impressed and proud for competing with the younger girls," Pavlyuchenkova, appearing at her 16th Wimbledon, said on court.
"My mental toughness is getting better. I used to be a little bit crazy in my head! But now I am learning to fight point by point."
She certainly showed mental resilience to put aside a moment that could have proved so costly during a tense first set which included six breaks of serve.
Operator error questioned
When Kartal's shot went beyond the baseline at 4-4, Pavlyuchenkova stopped despite the automated voice calling not activating.
"STOP STOP" was heard across the court and confusion then reigned as umpire Nico Helwerth picked up his telephone for advice. Television replays showed that Pavlyuchenkova was correct and the ball had landed well out.
But instead of her being awarded the game, Helwerth said that because the technology had failed, the point must be replayed. Eventually the Russian lost the game, allowing Kartal to serve for the first set.
"Because she is local, they can say whatever. You took the game away from me. They stole the game from me. You stole the game from me," Pavlyuchenkova, was heard to say.
"Due to operator error the system was deactivated on the point in question. The chair umpire followed the established process," Wimbledon organisers said.
Fired-up by the injustice of it all, she showed true grit to raise her game and from then on was the better player, striking a total of 36 winners to Kartal's 14 as she moved through to the quarter-finals here for the first time since losing at that stage to Serena Williams in 2016.
Pavlyuchenkova will face either American 13th seed Amanda Asimova or Czech 30th seed Linda Noskova next.
Kartal, who a year ago was virtually unknown before a run to the Wimbledon third round ranked 298 in the world, can console herself with becoming the British number one after her best performance in a Grand Slam.
Top seed Aryna Sabalenka reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals following a tough workout by a familiar opponent.
Sabalenka is eyeing her first Wimbledon title on the pristine lawns in London after missing last year's tournament with injury and the 2022 edition due to the ban on Russian and Belarusian players, and the 27-year-old made a fast start against Elise Mertens.
Sabalenka, who claimed doubles titles at the US Open and Australian Open partnering Mertens, was then put through the wringer before raising her level to prevail 6-4 7-6(4).
Alcaraz survives tough match
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz is defending his Wimbledon singles crown. July 2025. Photo: Photosport
Carlos Alcaraz came through a ferocious fourth-round firefight against Andrey Rublev to win 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4 6-4 on Centre Court and keep his bid for a third successive Wimbledon title on track.
The Spanish second seed stuttered in his opening three rounds but found his best form to eventually subdue an inspired Rublev who once again came up short against the very best.
Rublev rocked Alcaraz to lead 4-1 in the opener only to be pegged back but the Russian produced some astonishing tennis to snatch the tiebreak and move ahead.
Alcaraz knew he was in a scrap but never looked ruffled and levelled the match after Rublev double-faulted on a break point.
Rublev continued to throw everything in his arsenal at the champion in the third set but paid for not taking some early break points as Alcaraz found another gear.
Alcaraz looked impregnable in the fourth set and a single break of serve was enough to seal a 22nd successive match win and set up a last-eight clash with Britain's Cameron Norrie.
Norrie came through a severe mental and physical examination from big-serving Nicolas Jarry to beat the Chilean 6-3 7-6(4) 6-7(7) 6-7(5) 6-3 in a classic match under the roof on Court One.
Norrie, the world number 61, a semi-finalist in 2022 and now the last home player left in the tournament, looked set for a routine victory when he had match point in the third-set tiebreak, but Jarry refused to buckle.
He saved it and won the set, took the next in another tiebreak, before Norrie, who did not drop serve all match, made an early breakthrough in the fifth and held on for a superb win.
"I just had to keep fighting," said Norrie.
"I was thinking I should have gone T (with his serve) for about for about an hour and then he hung in there. I just wanted to keep taking care of my serve and I did that and I hung tough when I needed to."
- Reuters
