Mumbai: When she is happy with her tennis, Iga Swiatek enjoys repeating a line. She said it at the Australian Open this year, as well as at this Wimbledon.

"The ball is paying attention to me."

It didn't for a very long time at Wimbledon. It was strange that a five-time Grand Slam champion who excelled on clay and hard surfaces had only reached the quarterfinals of the grass-court major once. It was also unusual for a player who had reached the semifinals of both Slams this year to talk about getting "goosebumps" after yet another quarterfinal win.

Nevertheless, this triumph represented a breakthrough for a previous planet. 125 weeks at the top, making No. 1. Swiatek let out a loud "C'mon" as she raised her arms after breaking Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 7-5 on Tuesday with a forehand return winner.

The roar demonstrated that, at long last, the ball was responding to her commands, even when played on grass. It demonstrated that she had overcome an obstacle and secured a spot in the semifinals at Wimbledon.

When asked if she felt more affection for grass now, the Pole, who was a junior Wimbledon champion and has subsequently had a hard time at SW19, responded with a resounding "for sure." "I feel that I made a lot of effort to advance on this surface."

The signs were present prior to this Wimbledon. In contrast to most players who participate in grass-court tour tournaments in mid-June, Swiatek did not immediately switch to playing on grass after leaving the French Open semifinal in early June.

The globe The Bad Homburg Open was chosen by No. 4 as the last tune-up competition during the week preceding Wimbledon, when the majority of the top 10 players gather in London to train. Swiatek made it to the finals in Germany. Her efforts to improve her grass court game were beginning to pay off.

The major query, however, was if it would occur at Wimbledon. if the ball would pay attention to her there. It would, since she was giving it a voice. With the hands as much as the feet.

Footwork is essential for becoming more at ease on the quicker grass courts. When it comes to Swiatek, a baseliner who does well on slower surfaces, the key to conquering the challenge of the faster court was to have faster hands. She had to bring the ball in early and speed through it in order to command rallies on grass as effectively as she does on clay. To make the ball “listen” to the rhythm of her beat.

On Wimbledon's website, her coach Wim Fissette said, "What I believe she means is that we have been actively working on obtaining control of the ball since the beginning of the grass season."

"It's about not letting the ball slow down on the grass." Fissette said, "It's all about taking the initiative, having quick hands and a fast racquet head with more spin."

Her third-round victory over Danielle Collins provided several instances of this. In her last-eight match against Samsonova, one of the few current players with several grass titles, she also made great returns of serve.

In the first few exchanges, Swiatek grabbed the ball early, maintained a low stance, and then broke in the sixth game with an aggressive return to the second serve. Swiatek's advantage in the second set grew to 3-0 after the Russian increased her forehand.

Swiatek held her own in the face of a barrage of breaks, then capitalized on opportunities with her forehand. Swiatek's newfound grass code was evident at the conclusion of the match, as she hopped one step ahead to Samsonova's serve, returned it early, and sent a forehand past the net.

The ball obeyed her and did not return.

Andreeva is defeated by Bencic

At Wimbledon on Thursday, Swiatek will face another first-time semifinalist. Following her victory over Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva, Belinda Bencic, who missed all Slams last year due to the birth of her daughter Bella, entered her first Slam semi-final since 2019.

After becoming a mother, the Swiss is still making an amazing comeback, and she is currently ranked 421 at the start of the year and ready to enter the top 20.

Concerns are lessened by the sinner

Global By not only showing up for his quarterfinal match but also defeating American Ben Shelton 7-6(2), 6-4, 6-4, No. 1 Jannik Sinner allayed concerns about his right elbow, which he hurt in the previous round against Grigor Dimitrov.

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