Women's Semi-Finals, Part 2

:00:44. > :00:48.There is an overwhelming force that accompanies the Williams sisters. I

:00:49. > :01:02.should know. .Net! This must be so difficult to

:01:03. > :01:08.Lindsey Davenport! First there's the power. Brutal serving, vicious

:01:09. > :01:15.ground strokes. You hit it hard, they hit it back harder. Next there

:01:16. > :01:19.is the speed. They are athletes. Not quite as fast as he is gone by but

:01:20. > :01:26.if we think they are past it, get real. And that's the point. To them,

:01:27. > :01:33.experience is no enemy. It's their best friend. They've been there,

:01:34. > :01:39.done it, and won it all. You know it and they know you know it. You might

:01:40. > :01:47.think you've got the best of them. Maybe. Maybe not. Sure, they are

:01:48. > :01:55.beatable, everyone is. But trust me, it's more than a game when you're up

:01:56. > :01:58.against Venus or Serena. STUDIO: Yes, Lindsey Davenport knows better

:01:59. > :02:04.than most, she has played Venus twice in a Wimbledon final. Today it

:02:05. > :02:09.is ladies semifinal day and for the first time since 2009 we have the

:02:10. > :02:12.two Williams sisters in the last four of a Grand Slam. Four times

:02:13. > :02:15.they have faced each other in a Wimbledon final but both women will

:02:16. > :02:25.have to be at their best if we are to see a repeat of that in 2016.

:02:26. > :02:30.Playing Venus is fourth seed Angelique Kerber who has a ready won

:02:31. > :02:36.the Australian Open this year, and she has not dropped a set in this

:02:37. > :02:39.year 's tournament. Russia's Elena Vesnina is the other semifinalist

:02:40. > :02:44.having produced some of the performances of her career to reach

:02:45. > :02:50.the last four. Venus Williams has five Wimbledon 's singles titles to

:02:51. > :03:00.her name, can she added improbable six at the age of 36? While Serena

:03:01. > :03:08.is chasing her seventh singles title and Steffi Graf's title of 22

:03:09. > :03:12.landslide victories. Good afternoon. The Williams sisters are a big story

:03:13. > :03:17.here at Wimbledon. No great surprise Serena is in the last four but what

:03:18. > :03:20.a comeback from Venus. Her ranking had dropped, she suffers from an

:03:21. > :03:24.autoimmune disorder but her passion for the game has never been

:03:25. > :03:29.diminished. Will it be an all Williams final? We will know by the

:03:30. > :03:34.end of the afternoon. They are both on Centre Court. First up is younger

:03:35. > :03:38.sister Serena Williams taking on 29-year-old Elena Vesnina, playing

:03:39. > :03:45.in her first Grand Slam semifinal. Hard to pick a winner in the second,

:03:46. > :03:52.Angelique has the power but Venus to me has a grass court game. Serena

:03:53. > :03:58.dropped only three points on her serve and here she is with set

:03:59. > :04:01.points at 5-2. And that's the trademark shot of Serena, the big

:04:02. > :04:07.serve winning her the set, and she is on cruise control at the moment

:04:08. > :04:11.out on centre. And that form seems to be continuing in the second set

:04:12. > :04:15.as we join it live, because she's too- zero up. She actually has a .4

:04:16. > :04:22.3-0. Let's join Lindsey Davenport, John

:04:23. > :04:27.McEnroe and John Inverdale. COMMENTATOR: The scoreboard has

:04:28. > :04:50.another interesting statistic, just 38 minutes played. All Serena.

:04:51. > :04:57.Miss Vesnina is challenging the call, the ball was called out.

:04:58. > :05:09.Hawk-Eye has been woken from its slumber. No, well wide. That was a

:05:10. > :05:21.second double fault from her. And the end gets ever nearer. Venus and

:05:22. > :05:27.Angelique, you better get warming up! Really hard-core to know quite

:05:28. > :05:30.what to say when you see a demolition job like this. The gulf

:05:31. > :05:35.in class is huge but there was always the risk this might happen.

:05:36. > :05:42.The bigger the match, the bigger the occasion, the more likely it is to

:05:43. > :05:45.happen. She would have had a better chance first-round second round.

:05:46. > :05:49.Being unseeded she could have played Serena at any point. At this stage

:05:50. > :06:00.of the tournament, Serena's game, more than any other player, has got

:06:01. > :06:03.better. She improves as a Grand Slam goes on and a lot of times the other

:06:04. > :06:07.player gets fatigued as the tournament goes on. Serena knows how

:06:08. > :06:13.to manage her game and her body during the course of these two

:06:14. > :06:18.weeks. I know it is kind of frippery and very peripheral, but I bet

:06:19. > :06:22.Vesnina's phone has been almost imploding with messages of good

:06:23. > :06:32.luck. Anyone who's ever met her in her life saying, this is your

:06:33. > :06:50.moment, semifinal, go for it. Think how nervous she was against Kerber.

:06:51. > :07:01.She's barely even touching the surface. Cisco waits on her ankle.

:07:02. > :07:20.-- it's like she's got waits on her ankle.

:07:21. > :07:30.Vesnina only putting into play about 30% of her returns.

:07:31. > :07:42.Serena has barely broken sweat today, hasn't needed to.

:07:43. > :07:47.It's been an awesome and impressive display by Serena. Doesn't make for

:07:48. > :08:12.a very competitive match. The hour mark is looking a long way

:08:13. > :08:22.away now. Start to focus on the greatness of this lady. Even noting

:08:23. > :08:27.she hasn't tied Steffi Graf yet, she was two points from a Grand Slam, in

:08:28. > :08:32.the finals of the French, she just keeps knocking at the door. The way

:08:33. > :08:45.it looks now, hard to envision she's not going to win at least three,

:08:46. > :08:56.four more. Two to four. It passed Margaret Court sat 24. Yeah. -- get

:08:57. > :09:02.past Margaret Court. If she gets three more and gets to 24, that

:09:03. > :09:06.desire is so great to get to one more and be in front of Margaret

:09:07. > :09:20.Court for all-time Grand Slams singles titles.

:09:21. > :09:25.This can't be a semifinal. It's taken her 43 minutes to decide to

:09:26. > :09:29.throw in a drop shot and that happened. It's a shame because it's

:09:30. > :09:49.the second Thursday in a Grand Slam event.

:09:50. > :09:58.What was your head-to-head against Serena? Not great. So much had been

:09:59. > :10:05.written about her before she actually went on the tour. She

:10:06. > :10:12.played Laura Glasser, her first match at Wimbledon and 98 or

:10:13. > :10:15.something like that. At that time, were people saying, better watch out

:10:16. > :10:32.here, this could be one of the great players? Yes. They were saying it

:10:33. > :10:37.when she was eight. You were right, 98, first-round, Serena Williams.

:10:38. > :10:45.Who beat her that year? Virginia one Pascual, third round. I bet she

:10:46. > :10:50.still talks about that. She should. She is sitting in a bar saying, I

:10:51. > :11:16.beat her once at Wimbledon. People are going, no you didn't!

:11:17. > :11:48.Stress-free match. It's been basically just a training exercise,

:11:49. > :11:54.hasn't it? She's going to be happy she has doubles later. That was the

:11:55. > :11:57.first point where Vesnina said to Serena, come on, throw in a really

:11:58. > :12:05.good blistering shot down the line, and Serena did just that. One of

:12:06. > :12:08.these great debates because there was a fantastic documentary about

:12:09. > :12:14.Martina Navratilova on the telly on Monday night, and there had been a

:12:15. > :12:22.profile of Serena on Sunday night. Not sure whether that was a genius

:12:23. > :12:25.of programming to have them back-to-back. Martina Navratilova at

:12:26. > :12:30.her very best on her best day playing Serena Williams at her very

:12:31. > :12:34.best on her best day, who wins? These are these unanswerable

:12:35. > :12:40.questions, unfettered these two great champions of different eras.

:12:41. > :12:47.-- unfair to. That's like saying at the very best, Rod Laver versus

:12:48. > :12:51.Roger Federer, who wins? They were from very different generations,

:12:52. > :12:57.though. So are those two, when you think about it. 25 years difference.

:12:58. > :13:03.It's not quite as much but you get the general idea. You should be a

:13:04. > :13:07.politician, not answering questions like that, that was brilliant. Nice

:13:08. > :13:16.way to get out of that. There's a vacancy in the USA in few weeks'

:13:17. > :13:23.time, you know. There is. That's going to be fun, this fall. Boy. Bat

:13:24. > :13:43.might be a better contest than this. It's going to be a lot closer. It's

:13:44. > :13:49.going to be the same percentages as Vesnina, what was it, 52-48? It was

:13:50. > :13:58.close -- it's going to be the same percentages as Brexit. My goodness.

:13:59. > :14:02.Exhibition stuff. It is. Only lost three points total on her serve in

:14:03. > :14:11.this match. Could not have an easier time in your service games. If you

:14:12. > :14:14.can't put pressure on Serena at all on her service game, she will be so

:14:15. > :14:29.loose and relaxed in her return games and that's what we've seen.

:14:30. > :14:32.That's an 11th ace and so after just 48 minutes, barely one half of

:14:33. > :14:41.football, Serena Williams has three match points.

:14:42. > :14:47.As simple and as easy and as straightforward as you could

:14:48. > :14:55.possibly imagine. Just an exhibition performance from Serena Williams.

:14:56. > :15:01.Ruthless, relentless and into yet another Wimbledon final. One match

:15:02. > :15:06.away from equalling Steffi Graf's total of 22 Grand Slams. And might

:15:07. > :15:18.it be her sister that stands on her way? I can promise you unequivocally

:15:19. > :15:23.that the match you are going to see in a few minutes time... Will be

:15:24. > :15:28.longer? Will be longer, will be closer, will be a lot more

:15:29. > :15:34.competitive. That was disappointing, Lindsey. And this is an unfair

:15:35. > :15:38.comparison because yesterday was so extreme, but that's not a great

:15:39. > :15:44.start to the afternoon. No. We had such a high yesterday. It's going to

:15:45. > :15:51.be amazing to see Serena, Pete for 22 again on Saturday -- see Serena

:15:52. > :15:58.competing for number 22 again. Tough day at the office for Vesnina. And

:15:59. > :16:03.how does Vesnina regroup for the doubles later on? Does she have to

:16:04. > :16:07.say, listen, how do the people around her say, you've got to a

:16:08. > :16:11.Grand Slam semifinal for the first time in your life, concentrate on

:16:12. > :16:17.that. I bet she was saving herself for the doubles!

:16:18. > :16:30.They have just announced that there will be a delay before the second

:16:31. > :16:42.semifinal. Serena signing this, that and the other. Loads of souvenirs to

:16:43. > :16:47.keep for a long, long time. And he's gone, he's actually just left the

:16:48. > :17:00.commentary booth but in 1977, I got my programme signed by Bjorn Borg,

:17:01. > :17:05.Jimmy Collins, I got three of the semifinalists but the fourth one...

:17:06. > :17:14.You couldn't get John's? I didn't want it. People said we'd never hear

:17:15. > :17:19.of him again. So Serena heads off to meet our man in just a moment or so.

:17:20. > :17:23.I think a sense of awe at what we've just seen from Serena, but also a

:17:24. > :17:28.sense of disappointment that the competition was what it should have

:17:29. > :17:32.been for a Grand Slam semifinal, especially bathed in sunshine as we

:17:33. > :17:40.are on Centre Court. Looking, as it always should do, but obviously for

:17:41. > :17:44.the first ten D days here at the championship didn't. It really

:17:45. > :17:51.couldn't have been any simpler or more straightforward. Huge

:17:52. > :17:54.congratulations. Vesnina is a good player so how pleased I knew to win

:17:55. > :17:59.in the manner you did today? I'm very happy. I was really focused

:18:00. > :18:03.today because I know we've had a lot of tough matches before. Especially

:18:04. > :18:08.on this surface, I knew that she could really bring it to me. I was

:18:09. > :18:13.ready. Surprised you won as easily as you did? It's never easy. Every

:18:14. > :18:19.point you have to fight for. So it's never easy. Through to your ninth

:18:20. > :18:25.final at Wimbledon, has admitted him is that statistic to you? It's

:18:26. > :18:29.weird, I can't believe I'm in the finals again. Obviously 0- two so

:18:30. > :18:34.I'm determined to get at least one this year. How much would it mean to

:18:35. > :18:38.you if your opponent was your sister, Venus? It would be great,

:18:39. > :18:43.then we would be guaranteed a Williams on the trophy and that's

:18:44. > :18:47.the ultimate goal for both of us. Yeah, so obviously I want her to win

:18:48. > :18:51.and to do well and if not, Kerber would be another good match. I

:18:52. > :18:55.played her in Australia. Either way I look forward to it. Very

:18:56. > :19:01.impressive today, good luck in the final. Thank you. STUDIO: Big smile

:19:02. > :19:05.from Serena and why not? She mentioned she hasn't won the two

:19:06. > :19:09.Grand Slams so far this year but she's looking so at home on the

:19:10. > :19:15.grassy and on Centre Court which has had so many of her triumphs. Never

:19:16. > :19:16.allowed her opponent into the match, so Serena is through to the

:19:17. > :19:31.Wimbledon final once again. And the Centre Court certainly

:19:32. > :19:36.rising to the world number one, or some performance from her. We are

:19:37. > :19:43.back here a bit quicker than I thought. We meet so soon! So

:19:44. > :19:52.competitive. Reminded me of yesterday. Oh my gosh. But that was

:19:53. > :19:59.awesome. Serena lost one point on her first serve out of 24, 77% of

:20:00. > :20:05.first serves in, 28 winners. Vesnina, yes, she didn't have enough

:20:06. > :20:09.to show Serena. The practice session this morning was harder than that

:20:10. > :20:16.match. But Serena played at another level. She did not play at this way

:20:17. > :20:19.when she played against McHale, she went out there and was spot on and

:20:20. > :20:25.so focused. Maybe a little overwhelmed, Vesnina was. We will

:20:26. > :20:33.salute Serena in a moment, but that was horrible. Let's be real here.

:20:34. > :20:37.I'm guessing its accommodation of fatigue, she's played a lot of

:20:38. > :20:42.matches. You are not going to give Serena in any credit? Of course I

:20:43. > :20:45.will, she's the greatest female player that ever lived and people

:20:46. > :20:51.have heard me say that for years. But Vesnina was frozen. Her legs

:20:52. > :20:55.looked like they weighed 200 LB each, she couldn't move. I guess

:20:56. > :21:00.that just shows you how great Serena Williams is. And the occasion, first

:21:01. > :21:05.Grand Slam semifinal, Centre Court, a big deal. So this is the part

:21:06. > :21:08.where I always feel for players as a former player, to understand that

:21:09. > :21:13.it's extremely difficult. I was shaking in 1977, I know it was a few

:21:14. > :21:17.years ago, the first time I went on Centre Court my legs felt like I was

:21:18. > :21:22.going to buckle. I know the feeling of what it's like and it's difficult

:21:23. > :21:25.to deal with. The matchup was horrible in terms of the way they

:21:26. > :21:28.play, she hits a flat ball, she can't really win a lot of easy

:21:29. > :21:38.points on her serve. It said right into Serena. She threw the kitchen

:21:39. > :21:42.sink at her, slices, short, coming in, Vesnina, every ball was right

:21:43. > :21:48.here for Serena. I apologise for my outfit by the way. We were watching

:21:49. > :21:53.you out with my loss today, still striking the ball very well -- out

:21:54. > :21:57.there with Milos. Thank you, we have a good fun routine, it is nice for

:21:58. > :22:05.me to get out and hit a couple of balls. Here we are. Two on one? It

:22:06. > :22:09.takes two of us to handle him even a little bit. When he serves he even

:22:10. > :22:13.tells us where he will serve. I won't speak for Carlos. What kind of

:22:14. > :22:17.spin it will be as well? I get less than half of them in when I know

:22:18. > :22:24.where they are coming. Talk about a big serve. This is a great moment

:22:25. > :22:30.for Milos and after what happened yesterday here on Centre Court, he

:22:31. > :22:33.was over on Court One, he wants desperately as others do to rise to

:22:34. > :22:38.the occasion and try to be able to bridge that gap between the all-time

:22:39. > :22:46.greats. He is not a Lena Vesnina, I've got news for you. He's got a

:22:47. > :22:52.game. He will not be intimidated. He wasn't intimidated a couple of years

:22:53. > :22:57.ago, he came out tight, and he lost pretty handily to Roger who knows a

:22:58. > :23:02.thing or two about taking advantage of inexperience and being on Centre

:23:03. > :23:07.Court. So this is where I give Serena her props, these great

:23:08. > :23:10.players, they are able to handle all this and it actually motivates them

:23:11. > :23:14.and somehow they find a way to oftentimes make themselves play

:23:15. > :23:18.better. I've never seen Murray as fired up and pumped up as emotional

:23:19. > :23:22.and getting the crowd into it, correct me if I'm wrong, as the

:23:23. > :23:27.fifth set against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga yesterday? It was outstanding. So

:23:28. > :23:33.hopefully tomorrow and into the next match I expected to be extremely

:23:34. > :23:38.close, by the way. Has more experienced blue she's been there,

:23:39. > :23:42.done that, and she will be tough to beat for Venus Williams. Tomorrow

:23:43. > :23:47.obviously we want to see is great semifinal. No, we certainly do. When

:23:48. > :23:51.did you get a daughter Vesnina? You were commentating on both matches

:23:52. > :24:01.yesterday, eight hours -- when did you get to talk Milos it was one of

:24:02. > :24:07.the great days and I was lucky to be a tiny part of it but we spoke later

:24:08. > :24:11.and Milos is the type of guy who lets it sink in, and we discuss

:24:12. > :24:15.things on the practice court. And by the way I've got to say, Carlos

:24:16. > :24:18.Moya, if I have a second, and I guess we have a second, the match

:24:19. > :24:30.went a little shorter than we anticipated. He's done a great job

:24:31. > :24:34.with Milos. I saw him in Australia, he had Andy Murray 2-1 up in the

:24:35. > :24:39.semis, Murray stepped up as he did at Queen's because I was there at

:24:40. > :24:44.the Times as well. And this is what makes these true greats. Murray,

:24:45. > :24:48.you've got to love the guy more than ever, after what happened England

:24:49. > :24:56.and Iceland, the way this guy is battling. He's a proud Scot,

:24:57. > :25:04.remember. He is a proud Scot. But that match yesterday, 2-0 up he

:25:05. > :25:09.looked to be cruising and Tsonga threw everything at him. The early

:25:10. > :25:14.games. He faced a break point in the first game of the fifth set and of

:25:15. > :25:20.course he just told strong. Really looking like he's playing so well

:25:21. > :25:26.here, so confident. And Jo came back so strong, threw everything but the

:25:27. > :25:30.kitchen sink at Andy, slices, coming forward, serving big. His forehand

:25:31. > :25:34.was on fire. I always felt Murray had the extra gear to go to, and he

:25:35. > :25:38.used to the crowd so well. And he is so physically fit and that is so

:25:39. > :25:41.helpful mentally to know that, going late into that fifth coming he's

:25:42. > :25:46.still going to be playing just as well physically as he would at the

:25:47. > :25:50.beginning of the first set, whereas Jo are not always so sure about that

:25:51. > :25:55.and he has had a recent injury as well. He is heading out to court at

:25:56. > :25:58.1pm, the gates are open, and he is taking a lot of time with the fans,

:25:59. > :26:08.looking very relaxed. He deserves it. He fought and battled valiantly

:26:09. > :26:15.and hard. He and Tsonga, listen, briefly, early in the fifth, that

:26:16. > :26:18.break point, if he had won that... But it's very, very hard against the

:26:19. > :26:22.best players to come back from two sets to love down. So that's why

:26:23. > :26:28.you've got to respect what Federer does at his age, best-of-5 sets. And

:26:29. > :26:34.everything he's dealt with this year. He's now come back, use tied

:26:35. > :26:41.with the two players, Boris Becker, Aaron Krickstein, they've come back

:26:42. > :26:47.from 2-0 down ten times. And this was probably the greatest. I've got

:26:48. > :26:51.to think, there are so many moments of Federer, but one of the best of

:26:52. > :26:56.all time. What he's dealt with this year, knee surgery, Roger has not

:26:57. > :27:00.had surgery before in his career, then he comes back and get sick in

:27:01. > :27:05.Miami and has to pull out, then he gets a back injury as well and has

:27:06. > :27:08.to play out the French. He played an extra grass court tournament but

:27:09. > :27:12.lost a two Young guns and did not play as well as he wanted to coming

:27:13. > :27:15.in, this was a real challenge for him yesterday physically as well

:27:16. > :27:20.because he hasn't had as many rights as he has wanted to this year. I

:27:21. > :27:24.think it says something about a player who is willing to lose a few

:27:25. > :27:28.matches, willing to lose the battle and win the war. Federer could have

:27:29. > :27:33.played the French. I think he knew deep down he wasn't going to do very

:27:34. > :27:36.well. He's thinking of this tournament, thinking of that court.

:27:37. > :27:42.This was his best chance. He went over and played Stuttgart, those

:27:43. > :27:45.guys, the rust was on his body comedy was trying to get rid of some

:27:46. > :27:51.of it, and you could see it coming off. You knew it must be frustrating

:27:52. > :27:55.but he accepted it. It's amazing how he moves on from these losses

:27:56. > :27:58.incredibly well. He had a great draw, so you thought, this guy might

:27:59. > :28:05.get going. Cilic really played a fantastic match. And when Djokovic

:28:06. > :28:13.lost, not just Roger obviously, there's a couple of other people. If

:28:14. > :28:17.he didn't miss those two returns on forehands and get those back into

:28:18. > :28:23.play, a little bit tight. Understandably. 3-30- 40 in the

:28:24. > :28:27.third, looked like straight sets. Match point at 5-6, match point in

:28:28. > :28:34.the tie-breaker. You talk about Achille match Toulouse. The 0-40

:28:35. > :28:38.game in the seventh game, when he got back to deuce, the raw he let

:28:39. > :28:41.out to tell everybody on Centre Court and let Cilic no, I'm not

:28:42. > :28:48.done, I still believe. That is extremely hard to do. I guess that's

:28:49. > :28:52.why we say he's the greatest that ever played. Absolutely. There is a

:28:53. > :28:55.break between matches, we've got about another seven or eight

:28:56. > :29:00.minutes. Because we've been talking about it, we are going to show you a

:29:01. > :29:05.bit of the Federer Cilic match. Federer came back and took the third

:29:06. > :29:07.set, we can join it in the fourth, it was going to be decided by a

:29:08. > :29:33.tie-breaker. The encouragement continues right

:29:34. > :29:51.after the blemish. His first serve was not going to go

:29:52. > :30:10.into hibernation for the long. For failure that forehand was a

:30:11. > :30:15.nervous one, he swung too soon it, did not get himself into position.

:30:16. > :30:39.The same as the miss Dachau and at 5-4.

:30:40. > :30:45.The pendulum that has been swinging one way and then the other swings

:30:46. > :31:20.firmly back in Cilic's Fifa. -- That was just a battle of Wales. He

:31:21. > :31:26.knew where it was going. And he just couldn't convert. Federer again 108

:31:27. > :32:02.mph second serve, a Survival instincts kicking in for

:32:03. > :32:03.Federer off a great return. He put Cilic in an awfully uncomfortable

:32:04. > :32:12.position. Cilic unable to fashion the shot he

:32:13. > :33:15.wanted. Credit to Cilic, Federer asking the

:33:16. > :33:19.question, he put the pressure on. We have seen that work before. That is

:33:20. > :34:02.how you respond to the crisis. Fourth set point, second on his own

:34:03. > :34:18.serve. Mr Federer challenging the call. I

:34:19. > :34:23.do not think he will get a lot of more from this book now does he go

:34:24. > :34:37.back to the well, the big second serve to the forehand?

:34:38. > :34:50.He goes, and Cilic makes the return. Now it is his turn to try and finish

:34:51. > :34:58.things. I am getting whiplash, watching this momentum go back and

:34:59. > :34:59.forth. This is why I love the sport. Watching these players battle each

:35:00. > :35:45.other and themselves. Everything right for Marin Cilic bar

:35:46. > :36:20.the final shot. Desperate defence from Roger.

:36:21. > :36:28.Everyone wonders why he keeps going, that is why. How do you ever replace

:36:29. > :36:38.being in the Calder and of competition here on Centre Court, --

:36:39. > :36:44.cauldron. STUDIO: Centre Court crowd rising to a great champion in the

:36:45. > :36:51.fifth set, yes, I am still number one. Incredible comeback from the

:36:52. > :36:56.seven time champion, Roger Federer, keeping his hopes alive here of

:36:57. > :37:01.winning yet another Wimbledon title. The Centre Court crowd treated to a

:37:02. > :37:07.magnificent match and huge drama yesterday. Such a big favourite and

:37:08. > :37:12.he will be back for the semifinal against Milos Raonic but what seems

:37:13. > :37:22.yesterday. Mujdza Federer through to the last four. -- Roger. Serena

:37:23. > :37:28.Williams already through today in record time, just 49 minutes and a

:37:29. > :37:32.short time ago, her big sister, Venus, out to face Angelique Kerber,

:37:33. > :37:54.Australian Open champion. This will definitely be a more

:37:55. > :37:58.competitive match. Kerber such a competitive athlete, and of course

:37:59. > :38:05.Venus has the wonderful grass court game. Ray to see her back in the top

:38:06. > :38:08.ten and in a Wimbledon semifinal. She has lived with an autoimmune

:38:09. > :38:12.disease and tumbles down the rankings but she has fought her way

:38:13. > :38:14.back and is in her first Grand Slams semifinal for six years and at the

:38:15. > :38:35.age of 36. I have been around the block, 20

:38:36. > :38:37.times. To play this long you have to be passionate, you have to want it.

:38:38. > :38:53.Every point is tough. Venus Williams is the champion. She

:38:54. > :39:02.reigned supreme at Wimbledon. I still feel 26. You have this inside

:39:03. > :39:07.of you, it feels like you could go for ever. It has been a long wait

:39:08. > :39:11.for Venus, I think everyone felt she was playing the bit part to Serena

:39:12. > :39:17.but now back on the big stage once again. It is very exciting to see

:39:18. > :39:22.her bag in the semifinals of a major and you felt if it was going to be

:39:23. > :39:25.one it would be here at Wimbledon because she is the five-time

:39:26. > :39:30.champion and her game is tailor-made for this surface. Slice on her

:39:31. > :39:35.serve, enhanced by this surface and she feels comfortable moving

:39:36. > :39:39.forward, winning so many points in the forecourt. She also hits flat

:39:40. > :39:44.and hard, points are a bit shorter as well and she likes it that way.

:39:45. > :39:52.She has had to battle some close matches, we will show a little bit

:39:53. > :40:04.of this one, and she had to rely on her grass court instincts. Her

:40:05. > :40:08.opponent was two months old when she played her first Wimbledon,

:40:09. > :40:16.Kasatkina. Then it started raining, but also saps her energy. Kasatkina

:40:17. > :40:24.a talented young Russian who pushed Venus. You wonder these little chips

:40:25. > :40:30.and Venus, will she be tired because she played a number of long matches

:40:31. > :40:36.and doubles? Dealing with that disease, syndrome, excuse me, also

:40:37. > :40:41.playing doubles and waiting around. Is she going to be fatigued or will

:40:42. > :40:46.she feel relaxed after the day off? We say this will be more competitive

:40:47. > :40:52.because Angelique Kerber has won grand slam, she will not be overawed

:40:53. > :41:00.but she has a big game and she moves well. She moves like lightening, so

:41:01. > :41:06.quick about the court. She likes to hit the ball early. She is best from

:41:07. > :41:14.the baseline and creating angles. She handles the power very well. She

:41:15. > :41:18.has excellent hands, quick feet. Not great and finishing points from the

:41:19. > :41:25.net but she will really be trying to dictate play with her angles. She

:41:26. > :41:31.will try to keep Venus on the run. The key is Angelique Kerber has been

:41:32. > :41:35.to the semifinals here, and of course Australian Open champion

:41:36. > :41:39.earlier this year so she feels more comfortable. She has talked about

:41:40. > :41:44.the fact she went to Roland Garros and felt the pressure has Australian

:41:45. > :41:50.Open champ and said she had to change your thinking. She says she

:41:51. > :41:56.feels more relaxed now. I am sitting on the fence. I will be with you.

:41:57. > :42:06.You have two said in the commentary box first. Good afternoon, Simon.

:42:07. > :42:10.COMMENTATOR: Looking for something a bit more substantial than we had,

:42:11. > :42:18.spectacular though it was from Serena. Let's look at the players in

:42:19. > :42:25.detail. Kerber 28 years of age. Coming of age in Melbourne at the

:42:26. > :42:32.start of the year. Since when it has been a tricky time. A good record,

:42:33. > :42:39.semifinalist here four years ago, then beaten by Ron Vasquez. Bitten

:42:40. > :42:45.by Sam Stosur in the US Open semifinals. She is the only player

:42:46. > :42:56.in the final four not to have dropped a set. -- beaten by Sam

:42:57. > :43:01.Stosur. And the amazing Venus wins, at the age of 36, who would have

:43:02. > :43:09.thought 22 years ago when she made her debut in Oakland that she would

:43:10. > :43:16.still be playing? At this level. For nominal stats, seven grand slam

:43:17. > :43:30.titles. Five of them right here. -- phenomenal. Has had two tough

:43:31. > :43:38.matches, the longest final set of her career there, against Kazakh

:43:39. > :43:44.kina -- against Kasatkina. It has been a good draw but importantly she

:43:45. > :43:52.has made the most of it. She really has. Getting better with each match

:43:53. > :43:57.she has played that this will be a jump up in level today against

:43:58. > :44:04.Angelique Kerber. The head-to-head in Kerber's favour. They have played

:44:05. > :44:05.on grass, at the Olympics in 2012. Kerber winning that in two tight

:44:06. > :44:30.sets. Eva Asderaki Moore has the privilege

:44:31. > :44:37.of officiating at this one. They have a season-ticket for that box

:44:38. > :44:45.today. Who knows, it might be all Williams in the final. Super day.

:44:46. > :44:54.First match was fabulous for Serena but we are looking for something

:44:55. > :45:00.very competitive here. She has to believe she can win. It will be

:45:01. > :46:01.Venus Williams to begin. She has won all eight of them up

:46:02. > :46:06.until now. In all her matches she seems to have finished better than

:46:07. > :46:08.she started. And I think it is important for her today to have a

:46:09. > :46:20.quick start. She does not want a lengthy rallies

:46:21. > :46:45.against Kerber, who can run all day. Venus was down a set point in the

:46:46. > :47:07.first set of her first match. And she was down in the tie-break

:47:08. > :47:41.against Shvedova. She got lucky there.

:47:42. > :48:07.A little slow to get her feet moving. Break point for the German.

:48:08. > :48:38.Torben Beltz has coached Kerber for a couple of years now. She is

:48:39. > :48:39.rejuvenated, fitter and stronger, she found it difficult to come to

:48:40. > :48:59.terms with... ... To come to terms with her new

:49:00. > :49:03.level after winning in Australia. Now she seems more at ease with it.

:49:04. > :49:28.Her forehand will need to be firing today.

:49:29. > :49:35.Looking good at the moment. Much better than the first game when

:49:36. > :50:03.Venus basically broke herself. Still not really timing it. Three

:50:04. > :50:29.break back points. Williams breaks back with even

:50:30. > :50:35.greater ease. You might see a lot of breaks in this match today. Kerber

:50:36. > :50:41.is a prize money has been broken 18 times on her way to the semifinals.

:50:42. > :50:53.-- surprisingly. Sometimes her second serve can be a bit too soft.

:50:54. > :51:01.-- Venus has been broken 18 times. Kerber was broken six times in her

:51:02. > :51:12.semifinal against Simone Halep. That might have been going out.

:51:13. > :51:29.Great call. They are not natural challengers. -- late call. And she

:51:30. > :52:48.is right. Just lifted up on that friction. Two

:52:49. > :53:20.break points for a third successive break.

:53:21. > :53:35.Missed opportunity there, second serve.

:53:36. > :53:44.She hits it flat, very difficult to tell where it is going particularly

:53:45. > :53:48.on the forehand side. So nicely done. Something I think Venus should

:53:49. > :53:53.do frequently today. in the whole tournament Venus has

:53:54. > :54:45.been to the net 128 times. Looked like a tired forehand there.

:54:46. > :54:59.One thing to keep track of his her fatigue.

:55:00. > :55:09.She has been suffering for last five years with this syndrome which

:55:10. > :55:29.manifests itself in a number of ways but one of those is tiredness.

:55:30. > :55:39.Not much push off from the legs. She was diagnosed with Sjogren's

:55:40. > :55:43.syndrome in 2011. Some of the researcher and this morning told me

:55:44. > :55:53.that you have two pace yourself. -- some of the research I did this

:55:54. > :55:59.morning told me you have two pace so. In a team sport you could put

:56:00. > :56:22.someone else in. Calling for the towel, to slow

:56:23. > :56:29.things down. Venus has spent four more hours on

:56:30. > :57:09.call than Kerber. -- court. Super rally. Suddenly it comes

:57:10. > :57:35.alive. Excellent volleying from Venus and

:57:36. > :57:41.Kerber with the answer. Let's have a look at the serving stats. It is a

:57:42. > :57:48.little surprising, Kerber, not as threatening, but as a sea bird

:57:49. > :57:53.winning more points behind her first serve and behind her second serve.

:57:54. > :58:01.Quite interesting. They are very different service. She has a lefty,

:58:02. > :58:07.that helps, and slice as well, enhanced on this surface. 19 double

:58:08. > :58:17.faults from Venus and we have seen two already today. When she starts

:58:18. > :58:22.to back away from her second serve. Oftentimes it gets to slow and that

:58:23. > :58:36.gives opponents the opportunity to really take a good hit at it.

:58:37. > :59:09.You talk about Angie: birthday lefty, which started playing tennis

:59:10. > :59:25.she picked it up. She deserve things with her right

:59:26. > :00:19.hand. She was checking with her box. At last, she's and running on her

:00:20. > :00:24.serve. Serena Williams was coming in so frequently in the Australian

:00:25. > :00:47.Open. Kerber is so effective on the run, finding the angles.

:00:48. > :00:58.Still no fluency. Very edgy start from both players. Interesting

:00:59. > :01:04.tactic from Venus, looping that ball high to the Kerber forehand, who

:01:05. > :01:15.does hit the ball so flat. Trying to get outside of the Kerber strike

:01:16. > :01:51.zone. About waste love. -- waist-level.

:01:52. > :02:05.Fine serve. Kerber in my opinion should move over just a bit to her

:02:06. > :02:07.right. Venus likes that T server with a bit of spin to spin away from

:02:08. > :02:28.the right-hander. Slotted it in beautifully behind

:02:29. > :03:04.her. Neither player happy with the way

:03:05. > :03:33.they've started. Not yet. Haven't quite found that nice groove.

:03:34. > :03:45.Good shot from Kerber. Saul Williams making her way in, and boom! -- saw

:03:46. > :03:50.Williams making her way in. For so long we thought of Kerber as a

:03:51. > :03:55.reactive counterpuncher, she really becomes offensive wench is on

:03:56. > :04:14.stretch. -- when she's on the stretch.

:04:15. > :04:37.That a great example of what you were talking about, on the stretch,

:04:38. > :04:40.she played so well. She has got into absolute peak fitness now, stronger

:04:41. > :04:47.than she was, she moves fast, and her technique even at the

:04:48. > :04:52.extremities so good. Yes and she's talked about she works so hard in

:04:53. > :04:58.the off-season. November and December. Always was fit but she

:04:59. > :05:06.just seemed to take that to another level. As well as her coach they

:05:07. > :05:12.started working together after a little bit of a break-up, they have

:05:13. > :05:16.been together for so long. He told Angie in the off-season, talking

:05:17. > :05:21.about how she's known for her defence, the defensive skills, those

:05:22. > :05:24.were good enough to beat most players are not the best players, so

:05:25. > :05:30.she has to be more aggressive, go out to win matches and not just have

:05:31. > :05:34.opponents lose. That's where she was so effective in Australia, that

:05:35. > :05:36.different mindset, stepping closer to the baseline, driving through the

:05:37. > :05:49.balls, looking for anything short. Of course there's that combination

:05:50. > :05:54.that has allowed her to be in nearly, top ten for the last four

:05:55. > :06:30.years. Just kicked it up a notch. More aggressive minded.

:06:31. > :06:40.Seems to be a tactic Venus is trying to employ, more spin, higher over

:06:41. > :06:46.the net. Didn't have enough racket head speed, hanging in the middle of

:06:47. > :06:47.the court. Her match against Carla Suarez Navarro, she was employing

:06:48. > :07:03.the same tactic. Venus continues to change the pace.

:07:04. > :07:11.Kerber likes it at waist level, coming at her, just redirecting the

:07:12. > :07:24.balls. Opportunity for Venus to try to mix it up.

:07:25. > :08:30.So at last we have a hold. Venus's coach, there. Probably going through

:08:31. > :08:36.it as well. Yes, he's been with Venus for a long time, seven or

:08:37. > :08:45.eight years. Consider him more than a coach with everything she's gone

:08:46. > :08:47.through, more like a Big Brother or mentor. Part of that really big

:08:48. > :09:10.entourage. Crucial game here for Venus. Doesn't

:09:11. > :09:50.want to let that first set get away from her.

:09:51. > :09:56.Good work. Particularly at the back from Kerber. On the run, on the

:09:57. > :10:03.stretch, she is lethal. Great approach shot from Venus. Such

:10:04. > :10:15.angled to get Venus on the stretch. Didn't get enough on the volley.

:10:16. > :10:25.Venus has won just two points on her second serve so far.

:10:26. > :11:04.Just can't trust herself at the moment, Venus.

:11:05. > :11:16.Venus hasn't held serve yet. For her it's been a miserable start. Strange

:11:17. > :11:21.to have a set were Venus doesn't hold serve. Got to give credit to

:11:22. > :11:24.Angelique Kerber. Yes, she has a terrific return, she wins assembly

:11:25. > :11:31.return games in her matches consistently. Just wonder whether

:11:32. > :11:39.Venus is feeling that little bit of extra fatigue. Left five raptors

:11:40. > :11:45.well. It has been wrapped all week. Averaging four games lost on serve

:11:46. > :11:49.in a match, she's lost four already. Remember the 2004 US Open, Venus

:11:50. > :11:56.lost in the third round to Serra rani. She got very fatigued. That

:11:57. > :11:59.was the last time she chose to play doubles. Her coach David Witt saying

:12:00. > :12:03.that was something they were going to think about in the future,

:12:04. > :12:07.because adding that extra event really bled into the singles. Of

:12:08. > :12:11.course Venus and Serena entered Wimbledon this year because they

:12:12. > :12:20.wanted to get a few matches under their belt before rear. -- before

:12:21. > :13:10.Rio. So, new balls. Kerber and 5-2. Big return from Venus. Curb are

:13:11. > :13:29.reacting quickly but even she couldn't cope with that.

:13:30. > :14:16.Clip off the top of the net, meaty return, and here are two break

:14:17. > :14:18.points. Kerber has won only one point when she has to throw in a

:14:19. > :14:28.second serve. Did well with her second shot,

:14:29. > :14:39.there. Did well. Still break points. Copes

:14:40. > :15:02.with the pace so well. Seven of the eight games have been

:15:03. > :15:28.breaks of serve. Good match so far. Bait some of it may be down to sheer

:15:29. > :15:30.nerves for Venus, she hasn't been in this late stage in the semifinal of

:15:31. > :15:48.a Grand Slam for six years. And told you get more nervous as you

:15:49. > :15:51.get older even at this standard. Yes, a few players who have played

:15:52. > :15:57.in their mid-30s have talked about that.

:15:58. > :16:08.Kerber really dealt with that. Her signature shot, the forehand down

:16:09. > :16:45.the line. Open up a point with that shot.

:16:46. > :16:49.Just climbed a bit on Kerber, she felt she had to do something with

:16:50. > :17:12.it. Doesn't make the same mistake, that

:17:13. > :17:42.time. Might murder at last Venus Williams

:17:43. > :18:06.holds serve. Some muttering in the cloud. -- in

:18:07. > :18:14.the crowd. It's not been a great spectacle so far. Kerber in her

:18:15. > :18:21.fourth Grand Slam semi, remember she won in Melbourne. Semifinalist at

:18:22. > :18:30.the US Open in 2011, beaten by Samantha Stosur. Semifinal here a

:18:31. > :18:34.year later, beaten by Radwanska. Ten German women entered the Wimbledon

:18:35. > :18:44.draw. The only country with more representatives: USA.

:18:45. > :18:53.Maggie Smith waiting for some drama. Hasn't had much.

:18:54. > :19:05.Kerber bit of a late Bloomer. Semifinals of the US Open in 2011,

:19:06. > :19:11.23, 24 years old. Lost in the first round at ten majors. Being different

:19:12. > :19:13.in just the last four years for Kerber. Serving for the first set

:19:14. > :19:30.after 43 minutes. It looks like the right shot. Couple

:19:31. > :19:31.of crucial backhand drop shot in the third set from Kerber against Serena

:19:32. > :19:56.in the finals of the Australian. Costly. Routine forehand from the

:19:57. > :20:50.middle of the court. Kerber staying with her toe to toe

:20:51. > :21:20.and again coming out on top and here are two set points.

:21:21. > :21:31.There is the power. But harnessing it in the right direction has been

:21:32. > :21:34.the problem. Really needs a first serve, here. Take the pressure off

:21:35. > :22:00.herself. Longest rally in the match wins the

:22:01. > :22:19.set for Kerber. But again it was a forehand from

:22:20. > :22:25.Venus into the net. Not been solid today from Venus. That's usually the

:22:26. > :22:35.barometer for me of how well Venus is playing. The backhand is usually

:22:36. > :22:39.reliable, steady. Kerber I think has targeted it just enough. Not

:22:40. > :22:47.exclusively, playing it enough, running Venus to the backhand,

:22:48. > :22:53.trying to attack the forehand again. Had a strange run after winning

:22:54. > :23:00.inched it Ghat. She lost first-round in Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros, then

:23:01. > :23:06.got to the quarterfinal in Birmingham, but it was an unsettling

:23:07. > :23:10.run -- after winning in Stuttgart. That's why it's so great and, to be

:23:11. > :23:15.honest, quite a surprise that she's done as well as she has here. There

:23:16. > :23:28.are the stats. Not too good. Both struggling with their second serve

:23:29. > :23:34.points won. Not able to attack. Really not a terrific set from

:23:35. > :23:40.Venus, there. Doesn't feel like the match has gotten into gear. Talking

:23:41. > :23:46.about Kerber after winning the Australian Open, it's a whole game

:23:47. > :23:48.changer, life changer. She didn't react Manuel for the first couple of

:23:49. > :23:56.tournaments she played. Lost first-round. More expectations.

:23:57. > :24:01.Having to do more media as well. She said it was really difficult to try

:24:02. > :24:09.to time manage her life. Try to compartmentalise it. Three given

:24:10. > :25:12.compartments. Tennis, the media and personal.

:25:13. > :25:25.Yeah, big forehand that time. Great retrieving from Kerber, but to no

:25:26. > :26:25.avail. You could hear the "No" when she hit

:26:26. > :26:31.the forehand, she didn't need to see where it landed. Not completely

:26:32. > :26:33.trusting the forehand today. Kerber doing a good job of keeping Venus on

:26:34. > :26:51.the move. So, break point, for the fifth break

:26:52. > :27:23.of the Williams serve. No. There's no control on the

:27:24. > :27:39.forehand. It must be so unsettling. The

:27:40. > :27:44.forehand was so far long, and the wonderful was in the middle of the

:27:45. > :27:50.net. Just not able to find that range. Trying to add some more

:27:51. > :27:55.top-spin. Frequently. To try to give herself more safety. Once it starts

:27:56. > :28:01.to get inside your head, it's tough to overcome. I think Venus is going

:28:02. > :28:20.to just have to commit to really drive through it, stay down.

:28:21. > :28:57.First base for Kerber -- first ace for Kerber.

:28:58. > :29:26.I'm afraid Venus is living a nightmare at the moment. Only she

:29:27. > :29:33.knows if it's a result of the syndrome, or could it be nervous?

:29:34. > :29:37.Could it just be one of those days? Could be a little flat, playing

:29:38. > :30:02.somebody who's played so many more matches than she's played all year.

:30:03. > :30:13.Her legs are really taxed a little extra on grass, you have to get down

:30:14. > :30:15.and stop if she is fatigued at all it is going to hamper her on her

:30:16. > :30:29.serve. And half a step late getting from

:30:30. > :30:33.forehand and backhand. She needs three or four of those to get any

:30:34. > :31:10.confidence but it looks so good and works.

:31:11. > :31:36.That shot of her sister, usually a ball of fire in the close box. Add

:31:37. > :31:42.36 fielders player to reach a Grand Slam semifinal since Martin, aged

:31:43. > :31:45.37, when she was runner-up in 94. Will there be another chance. -- of

:31:46. > :32:04.her mother. It seems like her forehand is

:32:05. > :32:10.missing by more margins. Venus having to move more as well. Doing a

:32:11. > :32:20.good job of staying close to the baseline, really getting terrific

:32:21. > :32:28.angles. Somebody has had enough, that is her nephew, apparently last

:32:29. > :32:32.year he fell asleep when Serena was playing Heather Watson and the

:32:33. > :32:35.struggling here. That was a tough match to fall asleep in. One of the

:32:36. > :33:05.best matches of the fortnight. Known for her mobility but half a

:33:06. > :33:34.step slow there. Great rally. I thought Venus had

:33:35. > :33:44.done enough. Kerber just managed to get it beyond their reach. Credit to

:33:45. > :34:07.Kerber. Incredible retrieval skills. That has lasted almost as long as

:34:08. > :34:30.the first semifinal. Normally it is Venus Williams doing

:34:31. > :34:53.that to opponents. Venus trying the top-spin tactic again, trying to

:34:54. > :35:14.get it up high. Fed Cup captain for Germany.

:35:15. > :35:21.You can see that Venus is trying different things.

:35:22. > :35:41.well played. That was a lovely flowing chart. Just cannot string

:35:42. > :35:53.enough of those types of points together.

:35:54. > :37:17.Shake of the head, Miss judgment. It is another break point.

:37:18. > :37:28.Correction. Kerber is going to challenge. Interestingly she is

:37:29. > :37:34.walking across, she believes this is out.

:37:35. > :38:31.So necessary at this time. Feels like she needs to win this game to

:38:32. > :39:33.hanging. Just cannot put Kerber away.

:39:34. > :39:44.Astonishing work from the German. And another forehand dumped into the

:39:45. > :40:12.net. Kerber really extracting unforced errors from her opponents.

:40:13. > :40:59.That was too good. So smart to come forward. Another 14 shot rally.

:41:00. > :41:21.Unforced errors starting to mount up.

:41:22. > :41:32.Well done. The crowd of latching onto anything they can. They really

:41:33. > :42:18.want this to be a contest. Champions mentality, really digging

:42:19. > :42:24.deep. She holds both there is hardly any joy in it. She is looking very

:42:25. > :42:43.weary as she trudges to her chair. Could that be a platform to build

:42:44. > :42:58.on? It seems unlikely the way this afternoon has evolved. The forehand

:42:59. > :42:59.has been a nightmare. Better net play, though, from Venus in that

:43:00. > :43:31.game. Difficult for Oracene to watch her

:43:32. > :43:35.daughter knowing she does not have much left in the tank. You feel like

:43:36. > :45:00.Kerber could go on for hours. So much attention focused on Venus

:45:01. > :45:02.may have almost forgotten to be honest Kerber is not had to that

:45:03. > :46:00.well. . Kerber not hanging around out of

:46:01. > :46:08.any kind of sympathy for her opponent. Nice rebound after double.

:46:09. > :46:12.In the first two points. She came up with an ace and then back to really

:46:13. > :47:37.solid tennis. Just long. Where has this tennis

:47:38. > :48:04.game? She has been a little too spotty.

:48:05. > :48:18.Head and shoulders above everything else she has achieved in this match

:48:19. > :48:24.though far. That was a revelation. Is it the start of something?

:48:25. > :48:32.Certainly she has the ability to the deep and, with winners. She has a

:48:33. > :48:41.big enough game. And we know how strong she can be. Coming back into

:48:42. > :48:47.the top ten for the first time last year. Who would have thought when

:48:48. > :48:52.she came on the scene has a 14-year-old and everyone thought she

:48:53. > :48:55.and Serena when she arrived they would be like shooting stars, they

:48:56. > :49:01.will come and then they will win plenty and then they will go,

:49:02. > :49:07.probably mid 20s. Here she is at 36, Serena 34. Serena talked about their

:49:08. > :49:11.longevity, saying that even they are surprised. Of course it was their

:49:12. > :49:16.dad Richard who told about them having semi-interests, but then both

:49:17. > :49:25.had enough breaks to keep them interested. The Duchess of Cambridge

:49:26. > :49:36.alongside Jill Brooke, the chairman's wife.

:49:37. > :49:58.Miss Kerber is challenging the court. I thought some chalk might

:49:59. > :50:32.have flown up there. Slipping in the middle of the point.

:50:33. > :50:50.Luckily came straight back. well done, you can see Williams is

:50:51. > :52:30.exhausted. As she completed the job? So cool under pressure. That must be

:52:31. > :52:35.huge pressure on Kerber now. So intelligent. Making Venus move the

:52:36. > :52:42.maximum distance. Timing is consistently much better

:52:43. > :54:02.on the backhand. FF foot movement. She had more time

:54:03. > :54:51.because of the big serve. Kerber for the last ball was going

:54:52. > :54:59.long. So close now to a final and yet I wonder if she feels that

:55:00. > :55:09.close. The key is whether Kerber Will Beer will to serve fortnight

:55:10. > :55:15.keeping the nerves in check. We know she has done it before, and

:55:16. > :55:20.Australia of course. But will she be able to do it against Venus? Can

:55:21. > :55:33.Venus come up with the last surge of energy? To extend this set. Kerber

:55:34. > :55:40.has talked about feeling more relaxed here at Wimbledon than at

:55:41. > :55:48.Roland Garros. After that she talked to her camp and said she went back

:55:49. > :55:55.to the relaxed feeling she had at the Australian Open. Sometimes that

:55:56. > :55:57.is easier to say than to do. We will find out if she can do it right

:55:58. > :56:44.there. Must have been on the line. Just

:56:45. > :57:11.checking with Eva Asderaki Moore and she says it was.

:57:12. > :57:56.Steady as she goes. Two match points.

:57:57. > :58:19.What a winner! And what a way to win!

:58:20. > :58:32.At the age of 28 she has reinvented herself. A winner in Melbourne and

:58:33. > :58:48.is now a Wimbledon final for Angelique Kerber. Amazing

:58:49. > :58:53.transformation. Terrific match, Angelique Kerber, but Venus never

:58:54. > :59:02.able to get her game up to near her highest level. What contrast is

:59:03. > :59:10.motion is for Oracene and the Williams family. Serena through in

:59:11. > :59:19.just 48 minutes against Vesnina and now just one hour and 12 and Venus

:59:20. > :59:28.is out. Will she be back in the here at Wimbledon? We hope so. It is

:59:29. > :59:37.Kerber's moment. And she really did keep her nerve when it mattered.

:59:38. > :59:49.Hugely popular in the locker room. Another look up and her supporters.

:59:50. > :59:57.And terrific reward for all the hard work she put in in the off-season.

:59:58. > :00:13.Difficult times after winning in Melbourne but she is through.

:00:14. > :00:21.It is amazing, to beat Venus is always really tough, tough match,

:00:22. > :00:26.she is a champion and she has won so many times here. I'm really happy

:00:27. > :00:30.about my game and my first final at Wimbledon. A wonderful shots to

:00:31. > :00:35.finish things! I was trying to go for every shot, moving very well.

:00:36. > :00:40.The last point was amazing. You had good memories of playing Venus on

:00:41. > :00:44.the Olympics, how much did you use that today? It was a completely new

:00:45. > :00:48.day and I know that she played very well at the moment and she beat here

:00:49. > :00:54.a lot of good players so I was trying to move good and go for it.

:00:55. > :00:59.And it works, everything. And it is just a very good feeling. You have

:01:00. > :01:02.told everybody who has bothered to listen you are playing the best

:01:03. > :01:08.tennis of your career, explain why. I think right now I have a lot of

:01:09. > :01:13.experience on my last year's on tour and I really am enjoying my tennis

:01:14. > :01:18.life at the moment. I'm playing the best tennis, I have a great team

:01:19. > :01:22.around me and I'm just happy to be in my second grand slam final. Once

:01:23. > :01:27.again a repeat of the Australian grand slam final against Serena, how

:01:28. > :01:32.much did that confidence -- how much of that result give you confidence

:01:33. > :01:35.early in the year? A completely new tournament and the surface is

:01:36. > :01:40.completely new. I will just try to go out with a lot of confidence

:01:41. > :01:44.trying to play my tennis, and trying to give everything I can in the

:01:45. > :01:48.final. We wish you the best of luck, well done today.

:01:49. > :01:52.Thank you so much. Sue Barker: To see her back to her best, she had a

:01:53. > :01:56.dip in form after winning the Australian Open title but she is

:01:57. > :02:01.racing through the Championships and has still yet to drop a set. Saving

:02:02. > :02:06.her best tennis for here against a very dangerous opponent and she

:02:07. > :02:16.never let Venus in and goes to the grand slam final once again.

:02:17. > :02:23.Angelique Kerber will take on Serena Williams in the final on Saturday.

:02:24. > :02:33.Serena was in a hurry in her match, just 48 minutes it took to defeat

:02:34. > :02:36.Elena Vesnina 6-2, 6-0. At her best, Powell saw dust powerful serve and

:02:37. > :02:40.ground shots and Elena Vesnina was overawed and she did not play her

:02:41. > :02:45.best. But you can't take anything away from the champion, Serena goes

:02:46. > :02:53.through and she has her sights set on a seventh title here at

:02:54. > :02:56.Wimbledon. What a correa! -- career. Another upset in the Ladies'

:02:57. > :03:10.Doubles, the number one seeds Martina Hingis and Murcia go out

:03:11. > :03:22.losing 6-2, 6-4. So a lot of surprises in the doubles at

:03:23. > :03:27.Wimbledon. And Jordanne Whiley, the US Open champion, won her opening

:03:28. > :03:33.match on Court 16 against a fellow Brit Lucie Shue,, 6-1, 6-1. This is

:03:34. > :03:42.the first time singles matches have been played at Wimbledon but a great

:03:43. > :03:46.start for Jordanne Whiley. And just to update you, you can see this

:03:47. > :03:52.match on the red button, Alfie Hewitt of Great Britain against

:03:53. > :03:56.number two seed Gerard. Going well in the second set after losing the

:03:57. > :04:02.first. 2-1 in the second set. That is on the red button. So let's get

:04:03. > :04:07.further reaction to the lady semifinals with Tracy Austin.

:04:08. > :04:12.Angelique Kerber played very well and she did not allow Venus into

:04:13. > :04:19.that match. No, she did not, she handled her nerves beautifully and I

:04:20. > :04:22.felt Venus was fatigued as she could not pass that push off on her first

:04:23. > :04:27.serve and use her legs and her serve was not as well done as it has been

:04:28. > :04:31.the rest of the fortnight and Angelique Kerber will test your

:04:32. > :04:35.movement. She has incredible angles and she stand so close to the

:04:36. > :04:39.baseline and she hits the ball early and Venus was half a step slow and

:04:40. > :04:44.it dropped her as she could not get enough on her ground strokes and

:04:45. > :04:48.power and step and Angelique Kerber sending the ball to the other side

:04:49. > :04:51.of the court quickly. A disappointment for Venus, she has

:04:52. > :04:56.played well, and incredible storyline to come back at 36 and

:04:57. > :05:00.played through these long matches, rain delays, still be in the doubles

:05:01. > :05:05.in the quarterfinals with Serena. But today, she was a bit flat. It

:05:06. > :05:08.does catch up with you and we have been talking about the autoimmune

:05:09. > :05:13.disorder she has with the joint pain and fatigue, that is always a

:05:14. > :05:17.factor. It is and it makes a big difference. She might think a bit

:05:18. > :05:22.about, as she continues to play, whether she should not play doubles.

:05:23. > :05:27.I understand she wanted more practice with Rio around the corner

:05:28. > :05:31.at the US Open in 2014 was the last major they played in doubles and it

:05:32. > :05:35.affected her in her loss to Sara Errani in the third round and we

:05:36. > :05:39.have not seen that from Venus. Perhaps she did not expect to go

:05:40. > :05:44.this far in the singles because she has not had the same year she had in

:05:45. > :05:50.2014 and 2015 when she got back into the top ten. This was a big deal for

:05:51. > :05:54.her, Angelique Kerber, 28, Australian Open champion and she

:05:55. > :05:58.played so well in Australia. She had a dip in form to get used to the

:05:59. > :06:03.expectations and pressure, but she has had if the nominal Wimbledon.

:06:04. > :06:08.She got to the semifinals in 2012 so she knows her way around the grass

:06:09. > :06:13.courts and she is feeling very relaxed again. She looked good, she

:06:14. > :06:18.has not dropped a set and she was moving Venus around the place. She

:06:19. > :06:22.was, and Venus would get up a good head of steam and she played well in

:06:23. > :06:27.parts but Angelique Kerber has such resilience and she gets so many

:06:28. > :06:30.balls back in play, just her retrieval skills to get back in

:06:31. > :06:37.play. From strange positions, she can improvise her wrist. She has

:06:38. > :06:42.good feet and good hands to create the angles on. Check. She just has

:06:43. > :06:49.that ability to whip those crosscourt. Always having Venus at

:06:50. > :06:52.full stretch. Venus trying to come to the net to make the point is

:06:53. > :06:57.quicker and she came to the net 24 times, only winning 13 of those

:06:58. > :07:03.points because Kerber was so quick with her hands and passing -- and

:07:04. > :07:04.passing shot is. A flick of the wrist from awkward positions makes

:07:05. > :07:13.it so difficult. Venus starts the force and cuts it

:07:14. > :07:20.more fine and one unforced errors began to mount. 20 11 unforced

:07:21. > :07:26.errors today, Venus. Yes, which we don't expect. -- 21. But she does

:07:27. > :07:30.generate power and hits the corners, Kerber, you have to work hard. That

:07:31. > :07:36.was an interesting tactic from Venus, looping the balls up high out

:07:37. > :07:41.of the comfort zone of Kerber who likes at waist level, but it didn't

:07:42. > :07:46.have enough height and top-spin so Kerber could dictate play. We have

:07:47. > :07:52.to hand it to Kerber, she is a late Bloomer and had never got to the

:07:53. > :07:56.semifinals of a Grand Slam until 2011 at 23 and 28, she wins her

:07:57. > :08:03.first major. She is getting better. That is what we have seen in women's

:08:04. > :08:06.tennis, the average age for the four semifinalists today is 31 and nine

:08:07. > :08:10.months so it gives hope to these players in their 20s. It is just

:08:11. > :08:14.like the man. I was retired by then, when you playing at 31? I was long

:08:15. > :08:22.gone! This is changing the mentality and

:08:23. > :08:27.John De Botton said the other day, why did I retire so early? -- Yana

:08:28. > :08:33.Novotny. Serena at 34 is the oldest number one in the history of our

:08:34. > :08:38.game and 36, Venus is still going strong. The passion from these is

:08:39. > :08:42.still right at the top level and a good bar they are setting. As far as

:08:43. > :08:46.Kerber is concerned, it seems every time they've put the pressure on

:08:47. > :08:52.her, because she is German, they compared the Staffie graph and that

:08:53. > :08:57.is a tough comparison! Yes, Steffi Graf with 22 majors and singles,

:08:58. > :09:03.that is who Venus -- his Serena is chasing down. Is Serena going to tie

:09:04. > :09:08.Steffi Graf on Saturday? That would be an amazing history making day

:09:09. > :09:12.because Serena, last year here at Wimbledon, she got to number 21 and

:09:13. > :09:17.the way she was playing, we thought she would get 22 fairly soon. And by

:09:18. > :09:22.her standards, it has been an entire year! But I think the way that

:09:23. > :09:27.Serena played today, she was hitting the ball very cleanly. Her serve for

:09:28. > :09:32.so spot-on, she is the clear favourite on Saturday. Unless nerves

:09:33. > :09:40.takeover. You say 22, I already had hurt equalling Margaret Court at 24

:09:41. > :09:45.this time. I thought she could win all four. We will talk more in a

:09:46. > :09:50.moment, Tracy. Talking about Serena, she came through her match in 48

:09:51. > :09:56.minutes against Elena Vesnina select here a to she has with to

:09:57. > :10:00.congratulations, that was also and majestic and as close to perfect as

:10:01. > :10:03.you could get, how did you assess your performance?

:10:04. > :10:09.I thought I played really well and I thought I was really focused and

:10:10. > :10:14.zero again on every shot. Wanting every point and every ball. It was

:10:15. > :10:18.really good. Especially on serve. You only lost three points on serve

:10:19. > :10:24.in the entire match! That is what Patrick told me and I was like,

:10:25. > :10:28.really?! Yes, I don't know, it was really good. When you go out, do you

:10:29. > :10:34.know it you are on it straightaway and you think, this is it, I'm

:10:35. > :10:39.unbeatable today? No, I'm always the kind of person that picks everything

:10:40. > :10:43.apart, I'm a real perfectionist. I'm always looking to see what I can do

:10:44. > :10:47.better. The last couple of days, I have had good practice sessions and

:10:48. > :10:50.I felt really good yesterday practising and I was really hitting

:10:51. > :10:54.the ball well and I wanted to keep that form going. You looked happy

:10:55. > :10:58.like you were enjoying it, which has to help? Yes, I was definitely

:10:59. > :11:03.enjoying the moment and I feel like when I'm relaxed and happy, I play

:11:04. > :11:07.well, but it is just getting there. And at the same time, keeping that

:11:08. > :11:14.super focus, vision and just looking. You are into your ninth

:11:15. > :11:19.final. How do you prepare differently for walking out there on

:11:20. > :11:23.Saturday afternoon? I don't know, I will talk with my coach about it. I

:11:24. > :11:27.had been in several finals this year and I have not won yet. So hopefully

:11:28. > :11:31.we will have a different game plan on how to be able to hold up a

:11:32. > :11:35.trophy. Sue Barker: A different game plan,

:11:36. > :11:41.she was happy out there, I would have the biggest smile on my face if

:11:42. > :11:44.I had won in 48 minutes in a Wimbledon semifinal. She said about

:11:45. > :11:49.holding up the trophy as if it has been so long and it has been for

:11:50. > :11:53.Serena and her expectations are so high. That interview is interesting,

:11:54. > :11:58.she gives so much credit to Patrick Mouratoglou who came into her life

:11:59. > :12:04.four years ago as her coat and before that, it was Richard and

:12:05. > :12:08.Oracene. Patrick should get a lot of credit -- coach. More top-spin on

:12:09. > :12:11.her forehand and he has made her understand she could be thought of

:12:12. > :12:17.as the greatest in the history of women's tennis and it has gone huge

:12:18. > :12:22.as far as chasing the amount of Grand Slams and that has kept Serena

:12:23. > :12:25.interested in it. She changed her lifestyle, she moved to France and

:12:26. > :12:31.she is fluent in French and every interview at the French Open, she

:12:32. > :12:35.gave it in French. The nominal, she is always interested in so many

:12:36. > :12:39.different things and both young ladies, Venus and Serena, they are

:12:40. > :12:44.both creative -- phenomenal. Look at her record with Patrick, winning

:12:45. > :12:50.eight of 16 majors. She talked about the focus today, that calmness and

:12:51. > :12:56.demeanour. She always has that aura when she plays like she did today,

:12:57. > :13:03.Elena Vesnina froze on the big stage but Serena still played well, 77% of

:13:04. > :13:07.her first serves were in, 28 winners and seven on unforced errors. The

:13:08. > :13:11.way she looked today, she is sending a clear message that you will be

:13:12. > :13:14.ready for Saturday to Angelique Kerber. This was the second set, she

:13:15. > :13:23.did not drop a point on her serve. You wonder what can Angelique Kerber

:13:24. > :13:29.do is Serena is in this frame of mind? We have talked about her serve

:13:30. > :13:33.some any times and a lot of aces today, 11th. Her return of serve was

:13:34. > :13:38.also spot on, hitting it cleanly and Angelique Kerber will feel a lot of

:13:39. > :13:42.pressure if she has to hit many second serves as the leader will be

:13:43. > :13:46.inside the baseline hitting it early. Kerber can defend so well and

:13:47. > :13:51.diffuse power as she is so quick with her hands and feet, but Serena

:13:52. > :13:55.is relentless in her attack and able to keep the unforced errors down and

:13:56. > :13:59.that is tough to see Serena not taking her 22nd major. You have to

:14:00. > :14:03.keep the ball deeper than that and you can't allow Serena to hit ground

:14:04. > :14:08.shots on the baseline or inside the baseline, Kerber has to have better

:14:09. > :14:13.depth. She does, and Kerber has the ability to hit through the court,

:14:14. > :14:16.deep and hard. As we saw in the Australian Open final, Kerber was

:14:17. > :14:21.excellent with her angles because she stand so close to the net.

:14:22. > :14:26.Excuse me, on the baseline. And when Serena moves forward, Kerber can

:14:27. > :14:30.flick like she did today against Venus. Venus is tough to press at

:14:31. > :14:35.the net at six foot one and she moves well at Kerber kept coming up

:14:36. > :14:39.with the passing shot because of her good angles. Being a left-handed

:14:40. > :14:44.player, that could help with the serve but Serena's return is so

:14:45. > :14:49.strong. Over and you's Riyad, being left-handed has been more helpful as

:14:50. > :14:56.she has that slice -- over Angelique Kerber's career. But she has never

:14:57. > :15:00.had a consistent serve, it has improved and that was on the list of

:15:01. > :15:06.her coach, Torben Beltz. At the second serve can become a liability

:15:07. > :15:12.so Kerber has to get a lot of first serves in on Saturday. Angelique

:15:13. > :15:15.said it is a different service to winning at the Australian Open, what

:15:16. > :15:20.did she do so well in Melbourne that she has to do here? Angelique

:15:21. > :15:24.Kerber, her defence is incredible and at so many points, you think she

:15:25. > :15:28.is out of the point and she gets herself there with the quick feet.

:15:29. > :15:32.And she has got the good hands improvise and keep herself in the

:15:33. > :15:38.point with enough depth and angle. Hopefully not to get the ball in the

:15:39. > :15:41.middle of the court where it is hanging Serena will dictate play on

:15:42. > :15:47.the other side of the court. Kerber again has to use backhand slices,

:15:48. > :15:54.she did that very well in Melbourne, to change the pace in little against

:15:55. > :15:58.Serena. We saw that in the US Open semifinals, Serena likes the ball

:15:59. > :16:02.coming to her hard at waist level so if Kerber can change the pace, that

:16:03. > :16:07.will be crucial. And hopefully Kerber can throw in some drop shots,

:16:08. > :16:12.there were two in the third set in Australia at a vital time. But it is

:16:13. > :16:14.tough to come up with a precise drop shot when the ball is coming at you

:16:15. > :16:22.with so much In Melbourne and Paris, Serena was

:16:23. > :16:27.getting better with every match and not against Kerber in the final and

:16:28. > :16:35.not her best in the French final. You wonder whether that was because

:16:36. > :16:39.the 22 was on the line. She is 34. Some players in their mid 30s felt

:16:40. > :16:43.like they have had more nerves in the late stages of Grand Slam

:16:44. > :16:48.matches. Kerber has to hope that Serena plays a little less than her

:16:49. > :16:55.best, 20%, and for Kerber to play one of the match is of her life like

:16:56. > :16:58.she did in the finals in Australia. Absolutely right. Tracy, thank you

:16:59. > :17:03.so much. The reason we are talking to Tracy at length is there is

:17:04. > :17:08.another break before the menopause my doubles on Centre Court. So we

:17:09. > :17:11.have a chance to look at the men's semifinals which take place

:17:12. > :17:17.tomorrow. And this is the order of play that has been decided. First up

:17:18. > :17:22.on Centre Court, it is Milos Raonic against Roger Federer and Andy

:17:23. > :17:25.Murray against Tomas Berdych. What a day yesterday with Roger Federer and

:17:26. > :17:28.Murray in five set thrillers. But we will hear from the man who has to

:17:29. > :17:35.take on Roger Federer tomorrow, Milos Raonic, he came into a studio

:17:36. > :17:41.for the chat after his four set victory over Sam Querrey.

:17:42. > :18:05.Angelique Kerber sets and three quarters, he played the most

:18:06. > :18:07.blistering tennis. He is here, congratulations, Wimbledon

:18:08. > :18:12.semifinal, you must be happy, you played well today. Yes, I did a lot

:18:13. > :18:16.of things well and I'm happy to return to the same opportunity I

:18:17. > :18:20.gave myself two years ago and I hope I can make it count. We will talk

:18:21. > :18:24.about that, but you got off to a great start today. I was there on a

:18:25. > :18:28.lot of his service games taking care of my serve and both those sets, I

:18:29. > :18:33.broke towards the end of the set and in the third set, I had that

:18:34. > :18:38.opportunity. I slumped a couple of games but I got back on my terms to

:18:39. > :18:41.finish the match. How well did you serve today? I served pretty well

:18:42. > :18:47.but I think I backed it up better. I was coming in a lot and I was very

:18:48. > :18:53.efficient and successful at the net. I didn't serve as big as normal

:18:54. > :18:57.today. My numbers were very good. And Sam Querrey has improved so

:18:58. > :19:03.much, how tough was it in proving, returning his serve is, he can hit

:19:04. > :19:07.the spot and he is unpredictable where he will serve so you have to

:19:08. > :19:10.be shot on your feet and when you get those little openings, make them

:19:11. > :19:13.count as much as possible. He has improved so much from the back of

:19:14. > :19:17.the court and his belief and beatings Novak Djokovic, he then

:19:18. > :19:22.backed it up by beating Nicolas Mahut and he has been flying. He has

:19:23. > :19:29.been playing great and I watched his match against Novak and that was a

:19:30. > :19:31.great match and to back it up against a great grass court player

:19:32. > :19:35.Nicolas Mahut who has been playing great this year, it takes a lot of.

:19:36. > :19:38.It takes a high level of tennis which Sam has been putting out

:19:39. > :19:43.throughout the tournament and I'm happy and was able to get up on

:19:44. > :19:49.that. And you finished it off in style. Yes, I was able to get that

:19:50. > :19:55.last break. And I gave myself a chance to play it out well. This is

:19:56. > :19:58.your fourth set dominance. It got a little testy and you dropped the

:19:59. > :20:02.third set so you had to impose yourself in the fourth set. Aborted

:20:03. > :20:07.to get things back on my terms especially for those games at the

:20:08. > :20:11.end of the third set that it was important. I let him control the

:20:12. > :20:14.tempo a bit much and I was able to get it back which was a good thing

:20:15. > :20:19.which made a difference throughout this tournament. Was quite a return

:20:20. > :20:23.on the match point! Yes, I guessed he would go out and he burned me

:20:24. > :20:28.with that serve a couple of times so I guessed and I was able to put it

:20:29. > :20:33.down at his feet. It was a great shot. Andy says when you play a big

:20:34. > :20:37.server, it is a lot of guesswork. Not necessarily leading where it is

:20:38. > :20:40.coming, you almost have to anticipate. Yes, you have between

:20:41. > :20:45.one way or the other and figure out what that guy is doing, his

:20:46. > :20:51.tendencies, his habits. What he is comfortable on and that day it could

:20:52. > :20:54.be different. So it takes a bit of leaning one weight but even when you

:20:55. > :21:00.lean that way, you still have to make the return which can be quite a

:21:01. > :21:04.challenge -- one-way. How does your team work and who does what? How far

:21:05. > :21:10.back do you want me to go? Your team here. You have got three coaches,

:21:11. > :21:16.working with me. Ricardo is not here now and he was with me alongside

:21:17. > :21:20.John McEnroe throughout Queen's and preparation weeks. And Carlos is

:21:21. > :21:25.with me throughout the day and all the time. And John has been

:21:26. > :21:29.consulting and advising and he comes to the practice courts and he covers

:21:30. > :21:32.everything, he hits with me and he does everything. He says he has

:21:33. > :21:37.never retired antiques always wants to be out there and one day he

:21:38. > :21:43.played for three hours at Queen's. -- and he always. Quite a few hours.

:21:44. > :21:46.There was a phone call and Mike agent was asking John, what do you

:21:47. > :21:52.one? And he was saying his things and he said, but what do you want?

:21:53. > :21:57.John said, if I really got what I wanted, I would be back playing! Do

:21:58. > :22:02.you ever get a word in with him? Yes, you do, he does listen. But he

:22:03. > :22:09.also has his opinion quite quickly. He never listens to us! What has he

:22:10. > :22:13.brought to you, what has he advised you to do? He has given me a better

:22:14. > :22:17.understanding of where to play myself coming forward. How to make

:22:18. > :22:21.my opponents feel, how to carry myself on the court and be a bigger

:22:22. > :22:28.presence. I'm a big night and I can be quiet on the court. -- I'm a big

:22:29. > :22:32.player. Make sure I'm always there and is to be positive and all is be

:22:33. > :22:36.energetic. It makes it big difference for me what we have

:22:37. > :22:42.worked on. How do you do that, by more reaction? It is a variety of

:22:43. > :22:46.things. For me, it is being more vocal when I do things well in a

:22:47. > :22:52.positive way. Enforcing that stuff for myself and it helps me stay

:22:53. > :22:57.relaxed. Even for longer matches, there is not that feeling of fatigue

:22:58. > :23:00.as much. And coming forward, is it your natural game, do you feel

:23:01. > :23:04.comfortable coming forward or more so now? Definitely more so now. It

:23:05. > :23:09.is definitely where I need to be to achieve the things I would like to

:23:10. > :23:12.achieve. If I want to do what I hope to do at this tournament, I have to

:23:13. > :23:17.find myself at the net and I'm improving match by Max and practice

:23:18. > :23:21.by practice. You said that at Queen's and we know who is waiting

:23:22. > :23:24.in the next round, did you see the end of that match? I saw the end of

:23:25. > :23:29.the third set and it was entertaining to watch. I was

:23:30. > :23:35.watching the study. And what did you loan? You will not say that! Who

:23:36. > :23:39.knows who is listening! Exactly! Facing Federer, how do you do that?

:23:40. > :23:42.You play on your terms. He can do some any different things and when

:23:43. > :23:47.he is out there and feeling comfortable and balanced, playing

:23:48. > :23:53.his game on his terms, that is when he is at the most dangerous. And he

:23:54. > :23:56.has piled up a fantastic career doing that. I have to think that I

:23:57. > :24:01.have to bring things to my game, serve well and take it to him, not

:24:02. > :24:06.give him much read them and get him off balance. You have beaten him

:24:07. > :24:10.this year and that helps and also, Marin Cilic kept him out there

:24:11. > :24:14.sometime. Roger has dealt with many five set matches and I'm sure he

:24:15. > :24:19.knows how to recover, a have to focus on myself and bring my best

:24:20. > :24:24.game. What happens now, what you do tomorrow? Brett is one hour and John

:24:25. > :24:29.will go out to hit, he doesn't skip on the practice to. Go through my

:24:30. > :24:34.routine with him and Carlos and the day of the match, and will focus on

:24:35. > :24:40.things I need to do, specifically against Roger. Have you spoken to

:24:41. > :24:45.John already? No, I'm sure he is out there right now. Yes, the is working

:24:46. > :24:49.on the Murray match. He was at the other one so I'm sure he will be

:24:50. > :24:53.going from bid to boot. We wish you well, you playing great tennis, good

:24:54. > :24:58.luck in the semifinal. -- booth to boot.

:24:59. > :25:06.John McEnroe was practising with him, along with Carlos Moya and

:25:07. > :25:10.Milos said he can still only get 50% back! He is playing Roger Federer

:25:11. > :25:14.tomorrow and then Murray is second in his match against Tomas Berdych.

:25:15. > :25:27.So Centre Court now, the break is over. And this is the man's doubles

:25:28. > :25:30.match. The top seeds, Nicolas Mahut, against number 12 seeds. This is the

:25:31. > :25:36.semifinals and watching this is Peter Fleming and Andrew Cotter.

:25:37. > :25:44.COMMENTARY: Yes, this should be good for the crowds who are watching and

:25:45. > :25:51.some of those will be coming back from the break after the ladies

:25:52. > :25:57.semifinals, it in your picture, that is Nicolas Mahut. And Hebert who

:25:58. > :26:05.played his part in the third round. A close match and warm embrace at

:26:06. > :26:09.the net and he played Sam Querrey after his epic win over Novak

:26:10. > :26:12.Djokovic. We thought that Mahut might have the beating of Sam

:26:13. > :26:17.Querrey, but he was seen off in straight sets. A very good grass

:26:18. > :26:23.court player. That is his coach Mark Woodforde. 12 bands and doubles

:26:24. > :26:31.titles, Mixed Doubles, six time Wimbledon champion with Todd would

:26:32. > :26:40.urge. He is 34 now but as well as he has in his long career. Because he

:26:41. > :26:44.came in the Wimbledon a win against the player from the Netherlands and

:26:45. > :26:47.he took Andy Murray the two tie-breaks in the first round at

:26:48. > :26:59.Queen's. So many people still know him in relation to that long match

:27:00. > :27:03.against John Isner in the final. That is his young partner. Erasing

:27:04. > :27:09.talent. Keen to play a lot of doubles. Sometimes, you get Korea's

:27:10. > :27:15.doubles specialists like the Bryan brothers. Herbert is certainly a

:27:16. > :27:20.very skilled singles player as well, ranked 81st in the world in singles.

:27:21. > :27:23.And he took a set away from Andy Murray in the second round of Monte

:27:24. > :27:27.Carlo this year and that shows you his calibre as a singles player.

:27:28. > :27:35.They do gel together very well as a doubles partnership. And this is now

:27:36. > :27:41.an established doubles partnership including number 12 seed Max Meunier

:27:42. > :27:51.who has been around years, he turned 39 yesterday. He has had many

:27:52. > :27:55.doubles partnership throughout his career and great success. Six Grand

:27:56. > :28:03.Slam doubles titles. The first was with Lleyton Hewitt in 2,000 at the

:28:04. > :28:08.US Open. And he won the US Open in 2002 and built a successful

:28:09. > :28:13.partnership with Yunus Bjorkman. This man is slightly less

:28:14. > :28:18.experienced but making a name for himself in doubles. From the

:28:19. > :28:24.Philippines but American born and raised. He had a good partnership

:28:25. > :28:28.for a while with Dominic Inglot. Carlos Ramos from Portugal. In the

:28:29. > :28:45.chair. And alongside me for this is a man

:28:46. > :28:51.who won a couple of times, four titles here, Peter? Four titles,

:28:52. > :28:57.thank you very much. And you did not let from partner to partner, you

:28:58. > :29:02.stuck with the same. -- you did not change. I'm not totally stupid, that

:29:03. > :29:14.is not the sort partner you dump at first glance. But I like this

:29:15. > :29:23.matchup. This could be a runaway, the French pair have been so

:29:24. > :29:30.dominant this year. Nicolas Mahut and Herbert the top team in the

:29:31. > :29:36.world at the moment, for 2016. But they've faced a pair who on grass,

:29:37. > :29:43.very dangerous. -- they are facing. Mirnyi is a player who when he gets

:29:44. > :29:47.hot on the returns, he can be virtually unplayable. He just goes

:29:48. > :29:51.for his shots and he often has days when he doesn't make a lot of

:29:52. > :29:56.returns but if he does get hot, he is a difficult customer. Huey a

:29:57. > :30:00.completely different type of player which is probably why they have done

:30:01. > :30:04.well, they complement each other. Huey puts a lot of balls into play

:30:05. > :30:11.and he understands doubles and he moves well. Look out for Huey to

:30:12. > :30:14.perhaps get off to a rocky start, this will be nerve wracking to play

:30:15. > :30:19.in front of this crowd for the first time. The semifinal in the man's

:30:20. > :30:22.doubles. The other one taking place on Court Number One at the moment.

:30:23. > :30:35.Mirnyi to get us under way. Looking for the coded signals and

:30:36. > :31:38.the whispers between the partners. That is good from Mirnyi. Had to be,

:31:39. > :31:46.a bright start from the French pair. This was a dangerous return. Going

:31:47. > :31:58.up the line regardless, he had decided, just to keep Herbert

:31:59. > :32:11.conscious that he cannot take liberties.

:32:12. > :32:22.Misjudgement from Herbert. Looks like quite a good recovery from Max

:32:23. > :32:30.Mirnyi. Looked like it was more over his head then it ordinarily is, but

:32:31. > :32:45.he thought, well, and he adjusted well.

:32:46. > :32:59.Strong return from Mahut. First game, first break point. The French

:33:00. > :33:17.ball slinging that ball like a grapefruit.

:33:18. > :33:29.Wide, and a break for the number two seeds, what a start for Herbert and

:33:30. > :33:34.Mahut. Ideal, fairly quiet Centre Court, as you would expect, a few

:33:35. > :33:37.more spectators will come in through the course of the first set, the

:33:38. > :33:43.other Semih Kaya taking place on number one court, Julien Benneteau

:33:44. > :33:50.and Roger-Vasselin against Raven Klaasen and RAM. We talk about the

:33:51. > :33:54.strength in depth in French tennis, they have some strong contenders in

:33:55. > :34:00.the Men's Doubles as well. -- Ram. They may have a challenge match for

:34:01. > :34:06.who plays in the Davis Cup tie, they have a Davis Cup tie next week?

:34:07. > :34:25.Scrambling furiously... The server of Herbert - serve. It

:34:26. > :34:30.was the weaker of the two. And their opponents were able to have some joy

:34:31. > :34:57.on it. It might be the weaker serve of the

:34:58. > :35:01.pair, but by no means week. Davis Cup, I know that Yannick Noah has

:35:02. > :35:10.named him in the squad. After his efforts. Beautifully put away by

:35:11. > :35:24.Mahut, he really has started brightly.

:35:25. > :35:44.Made it look so easy but it was not. Hold, to love, after that break of

:35:45. > :35:50.serve. They are the number two seeds, the Bryan brothers are the

:35:51. > :36:24.number one seeds. But they are out, they lost against Ram and Klaasen.

:36:25. > :36:32.The Bryan brothers were number two seed, in fact, Herbert and men who

:36:33. > :36:41.were the number one seed, I accidentally demoted them -- Herbert

:36:42. > :36:56.and Mahut. France plays the Czech Republic...

:36:57. > :37:07.Well spotted by Huey. Wimbledon final may just be a challenge match

:37:08. > :37:22.to see who plays in the Davis Cup tie.

:37:23. > :37:31.Huey not the tallest guy, went down at 130, almost came back faster!

:37:32. > :37:47.Great serve to close it out. The reason they are the number one

:37:48. > :37:52.seeds, they have four titles this season in doubles, very good singles

:37:53. > :38:04.players, they do come together well, they have built a partnership, they

:38:05. > :38:12.have the knowledge now. Well practised. To have Mark Woodforde on

:38:13. > :38:19.your side... He knows exactly how to succeed in doubles. Gold medallist

:38:20. > :38:25.in the Olympics as well, 1996, with Todd Woodbridge. Max Meyer new, it

:38:26. > :38:29.was, in the Mixed Doubles, with Tony is a rancour, they denied Andy

:38:30. > :38:38.Murray and Laura Robson on this court. 2012. -- Victoria Azarenka.

:38:39. > :38:46.Very good singles player, Max Mirnyi. Up to 18th in the world,

:38:47. > :38:49.back in 2003, winning a title on the ATP Tour, Rotterdam, quarterfinalist

:38:50. > :38:54.at the US Open but towards the end of his career, as quite a few

:38:55. > :38:57.players do, still competing in doubles, does not quite need the

:38:58. > :39:03.legs and the stamina for that, you can use short tennis brain and your

:39:04. > :39:17.skills, and he has made a very successful career.

:39:18. > :39:48.Almost one for the Royal box. Even they have to give it back.

:39:49. > :40:24.Did so well with the defensive shot. Not really the kind of shot you want

:40:25. > :40:38.to hit into the net, depth is always a good thing. Correction, the ball

:40:39. > :40:44.was good. Carlos Ramos steps in, known challenge coming from Huey and

:40:45. > :40:52.Mirnyi, it is a hold to love for Mahut. Haven't they started well.

:40:53. > :41:06.No point lost on serve yet by the French pair. The man who was broken

:41:07. > :41:12.in the very first game, serving now. Pretty impressive that they are yet

:41:13. > :41:17.to miss a return on the serve of near -- Mirnyi. On a grass court,

:41:18. > :41:32.that is saying something. French wall at the net does its

:41:33. > :42:04.work. Useful return by Herbert. Cannot quite shove it over, another

:42:05. > :42:28.great return, Mirnyi managed to somehow respond, beautiful pick-up.

:42:29. > :42:42.Mirnyi is the boss. Knuckles must be worn out by the end of the doubles

:42:43. > :43:11.match, so much bumping. Every point, win or lose!

:43:12. > :43:25.Doubles partnership, the combination of... Huey, popping up at the net,

:43:26. > :43:28.there. Such a good volleyer. Huey and Mirnyi, teamed up at the start

:43:29. > :43:31.of the year, QE had been playing with the Finnish player, Henri

:43:32. > :43:39.Kontinen, he has also done well in the doubles. Looking at all of the

:43:40. > :43:44.various partnerships they have had, Mirnyi has had a few. -- Huey. How

:43:45. > :43:50.do they come about, how are these alliances made? Asked about you

:43:51. > :43:53.establishing yourself with John McEnroe and sticking with it, these

:43:54. > :43:58.days, so many doubles specialist, they may work well for a couple of

:43:59. > :44:04.years, but then they break apart for whatever reason. Small community.

:44:05. > :44:13.These guys practice with one another, socialise with each other.

:44:14. > :44:19.They understand how each other play, but they also know which guys they

:44:20. > :44:24.get along with. Doubles partnership is almost like a marriage, spending

:44:25. > :44:27.so much time with these guys, if you are not perfectly compatible, after

:44:28. > :44:31.two or three years, you are sick of the guy, you just cannot look at him

:44:32. > :44:46.anymore, and so it is time to move on. Herbert and Mahut clearly enjoy

:44:47. > :44:50.each other's company. All the French players, singles doubles, they tend

:44:51. > :45:14.to socialise together a lot, quite a tight group.

:45:15. > :46:08.First point against the serve of Herbert and Mahut.

:46:09. > :46:14.In previous rounds we have talked about how the server Herbert has

:46:15. > :46:27.been a week of the two, but he has started very strongly here.

:46:28. > :46:56.Once more yielding just one point on serve.

:46:57. > :47:08.Nice flowing service action. Somewhat reminiscent of Henri

:47:09. > :47:29.Leconte. Went on self-preservation, that

:47:30. > :47:34.action from Mahut, two hands on the racket, blocking it. French pair

:47:35. > :48:17.doing so well on returns. Good servant once again. Max Mirnyi,

:48:18. > :48:18.very tall, QE is not the tallest, but flowing, powerful service

:48:19. > :48:39.action. -- Huey. Nicely done by Mahut, over the

:48:40. > :48:43.sizeable figure of Mirnyi. Certainly looked as though Mirnyi could have

:48:44. > :48:47.reached it, perhaps let it go, knowing it would have been a very

:48:48. > :49:08.difficult shot to put back into play with any effectiveness. Low drive.

:49:09. > :49:21.Talked about his partnership, Trent Huey, with Dominic England, they got

:49:22. > :49:29.to the quarterfinals of this trailing open, 2014, and this year,

:49:30. > :49:33.as the partnership began, reached that stage as well but lost to Radek

:49:34. > :49:38.Stepanek and Daniel Nestor. -- Dominic Inglot. Daniel Nestor is

:49:39. > :49:45.another one who has played with max menu, to some success, in the French

:49:46. > :49:50.Open. A couple of times. One of the old guard. -- Max Mirnyi. Daniel

:49:51. > :49:56.Nestor still playing, one of the old guard, 44. He played with Mick

:49:57. > :50:00.England here, so it is swings and roundabouts. Very successful career,

:50:01. > :50:03.again, talking about the difference between singles players who play

:50:04. > :50:06.doubles and the Bryan brothers and various others who are doubles

:50:07. > :50:11.players from the start, they know that they can make a very good

:50:12. > :50:16.living. We do the fact that more of the high profile names do not play

:50:17. > :50:23.quite so much doubles anymore, certainly in your day, you, McEnroe,

:50:24. > :50:27.adds many others, doubles was a bigger part of your career. It was,

:50:28. > :50:34.there was not as much money in the game as now, guys can make so much

:50:35. > :50:41.money playing singles, that I guess they have to weigh up whether the

:50:42. > :50:52.prize money they will make in doubles, which is much less

:50:53. > :50:55.percentage-wise, is worthwhile. If you lose a quarterfinal singles

:50:56. > :50:58.match because you are tired because you have played three doubles

:50:59. > :51:13.matches, that is quite a sacrifice in financial terms.

:51:14. > :51:19.This is the only major where they still play best-of-5 sets in the

:51:20. > :51:20.doubles. They did not in the first two rounds this year, because of the

:51:21. > :51:33.weather. Shows the dominance of the French

:51:34. > :52:01.partnership. Once more, I hold to love. -- a hold

:52:02. > :52:11.to love. Huey and Mirnyi, running out of time in this first set.

:52:12. > :52:28.Mirnyi, now, to stay in it. Both French players have been returning

:52:29. > :52:33.so well. He really is on fire, Mahut, not only making every return,

:52:34. > :52:38.but picking his targets, perfectly. It is almost as though he is reading

:52:39. > :52:45.the opposite man's mind. Where are you going to be...? OK...! The line

:52:46. > :53:53.does not lie. White flying up. Racing through the games as well, 23

:53:54. > :54:55.minutes gone. Still hanging on in the first set,

:54:56. > :55:07.little bit like Donald Duck's nephews... Huey, Dewey and... Baby

:55:08. > :55:13.Huey! At the Olympics, Max Mirnyi was the flag bearer for Belarus,

:55:14. > :55:16.opening ceremony, in the game, we already mentioned, Victoria

:55:17. > :55:30.Azarenka. I am not sure if he is going to Rio de Janeiro. Been there,

:55:31. > :55:34.done that. Does look very much like it will be another French pair, if

:55:35. > :55:39.they get through, it is Julien Benneteau and Roger-Vasselin and who

:55:40. > :56:24.are in control against Ram and Klaasen. That is John Barrett.

:56:25. > :56:50.Serving for the set, and the first double

:56:51. > :57:37.Certainly lost his first serve, Herbert. Mirnyi not able to do

:57:38. > :58:12.enough with it. They are having their opportunities,

:58:13. > :58:16.Mirnyi and Huey, dropping his level just slightly, Herbert, but still,

:58:17. > :58:27.two set points for the number one seeds.

:58:28. > :58:37.Couple of sets taken fairly comfortably, just the one break,

:58:38. > :58:41.they were in control throughout. They look good value for that first

:58:42. > :58:48.set. You mentioned the fact they did have opportunities, Mirnyi and Huey,

:58:49. > :58:55.but they were not really gilt-edged chances, they were borderline. It

:58:56. > :59:01.shows, when the French pair go into conservative mode, when they decide,

:59:02. > :59:07.OK, let's batten down the hatches, they are still pretty effective.

:59:08. > :59:14.First serves in, 90... Hold on, I had gone a little blind! 64%!

:59:15. > :59:25.But still, you can see from those statistics, dominant. No break

:59:26. > :59:26.points from Mirnyi, not even close. 30-20, total points won. Pretty

:59:27. > :59:43.one-sided. We talked about them building a

:59:44. > :59:45.successful partnership, they are already Grand Slam champions,

:59:46. > :59:48.winning the US Open last year, beating Jamie Murray in straight

:59:49. > :59:53.sets in the final. John Pearson now plays with Henri Kontinen, we have

:59:54. > :59:58.mentioned the names that go around on the doubles carousel, switching

:59:59. > :00:03.partners, trying something different, this partnership maybe

:00:04. > :00:09.around for a little while, depending upon the longevity of Nicolas Mahut,

:00:10. > :00:12.how long he can go on at his age, 34, when you look across the net,

:00:13. > :00:26.Max Mirnyi, 39. -- Bruno Soares. A year or two Mirka ago, Mahut might

:00:27. > :00:35.have thought he could play a couple more years and it doesn't become

:00:36. > :00:39.worth it. Das two ago. As a pair, they will probably make $1 million

:00:40. > :01:00.and that certainly worth continuing for. In doubles alone.

:01:01. > :01:18.Yes, I'm not sure what Huey was attempting with that. Trying to

:01:19. > :01:55.thread the needle. Oh, dear. Well, it was fluffed by

:01:56. > :02:03.Huey but great court coverage by Mahut.

:02:04. > :02:12.Talk about crucial points. They broke right at the start of the

:02:13. > :03:07.first set and a chance here at the start of the second.

:03:08. > :03:19.Good recovery from a curious position. It had been a dreadful

:03:20. > :03:28.start to the second set, the big broken at the outset. -- to be

:03:29. > :03:41.broken. But I could see Barry Gibb in the Royal Box -- I thought.

:03:42. > :04:06.Mahut and Herbert, both tall players, six foot three and six foot

:04:07. > :04:18.four, it is not easy to get the ball around them all over them.

:04:19. > :04:34.It just grazed the frame of the racket of Herbert.

:04:35. > :05:34.A really well played point by Mirnyi. But nothing.

:05:35. > :05:41.In doubles, just about finding the weakness in the defence. It is often

:05:42. > :05:42.difficult to break down a partnership that is covering the

:05:43. > :06:01.court well and to find that gap. Nothing over the top of Herbert.

:06:02. > :06:05.Just his singles... Doubles as about the first shot you hit, the first

:06:06. > :06:10.serve is not placed well all the return of serve, they are the two

:06:11. > :06:20.most important shots in the game, definitely. A useful first shot from

:06:21. > :06:24.Mahut, Mac -- ace to close it out. Herbert will be thinking, at what

:06:25. > :06:29.point do you decide to focus on doubles? He is on the cusp in

:06:30. > :06:34.singles at 25, he has been up to 79th in the world, 81st at the

:06:35. > :06:40.moment. It is a decision to say, right, I will focus on my singles,

:06:41. > :06:44.but still play with the doubles. I think he is in a position where he

:06:45. > :06:49.can do both quite happily. The problem gets wet if his singles

:06:50. > :06:55.ranking drops a little bit to the point where he has to qualify every

:06:56. > :06:59.week, then it gets very difficult. The qualifying is played on a

:07:00. > :07:05.Saturday and Sunday. These players will expect to be in the semifinals

:07:06. > :07:11.of most doubles tournaments. So I guess the motivation for him is to

:07:12. > :07:31.keep your singles ranking up and stay out of those qualifiers.

:07:32. > :08:03.A welcome respite. Comfortable service games so far from Mirnyi.

:08:04. > :08:24.Just as I said it was comfortable, double fault number one from Mirnyi.

:08:25. > :08:37.Oh, dear. A great return off the volley from Herbert.

:08:38. > :08:44.Talk us through this technique, Peter. Yes, he just did not snap it.

:08:45. > :08:52.He was trying to hit an overhead smash, which is not bad play but

:08:53. > :09:00.just a little late on it. Or not aggressive enough. Mirnyi and Huey

:09:01. > :09:03.have now held a couple of times in a set number two and that will make

:09:04. > :09:10.them feel a lot better and it will allow them to relax perhaps a little

:09:11. > :09:18.on returns. They have got history, these two partnerships. I have met

:09:19. > :09:22.once in Miami at the end of March, Mahut and Herbert the winners in a

:09:23. > :09:33.champions tie-break -- they have met. Dame Maggie Smith is coming

:09:34. > :09:44.again. You think of her as miss Jean Brodie. Excellent.

:09:45. > :09:54.Peter doesn't know about this! No, I don't. There is no shame in that.

:09:55. > :09:59.One day, I will catch up on my films. If you are catching up on

:10:00. > :10:03.Harry Potter films, a will ask you serious questions. -- I will ask

:10:04. > :10:30.you. The older man just getting a bit of

:10:31. > :10:35.a pep talk. Yes, don't do that again. It we've pep talk. -- Abe

:10:36. > :10:52.Reef. Doubles is so much about half

:10:53. > :10:54.chances. Mirnyi and Huey desperately need to get one of these next two

:10:55. > :11:14.points. Well, we did talk about the serve of

:11:15. > :11:20.Herbert occasionally going walkabouts. It was so strong in the

:11:21. > :11:24.first set but at the end when he was serving, we saw a little bit of

:11:25. > :11:40.tightness and now in all sorts of problems.

:11:41. > :11:53.That is wide, the second serve. Based have the luxury two more big

:11:54. > :12:07.points. On this surface, they slip away quickly.

:12:08. > :12:22.-- they still have the luxury. That is very nicely played.

:12:23. > :12:39.Still one break point to save, Herbert and Mahut.

:12:40. > :12:44.So much to admire about that. Feeling the pressure, three break

:12:45. > :13:27.points. Some good serving from Herbert. Finished off by Mahut.

:13:28. > :13:32.Goodness, I'm not sure what he was attempting. He slid right under the

:13:33. > :14:42.ball. A precious holder for Pierre Herbert

:14:43. > :14:48.and a clench of the fists from Nicolas Mahut, and applause from

:14:49. > :14:55.Mark Woodforde. And a golden opportunity was let slip by Huey and

:14:56. > :15:01.Mirnyi, three break points. Yes, you look at the service game at 0-40 and

:15:02. > :15:07.you think they should break here, which usually just a 50-50 chance to

:15:08. > :15:10.convert from 0-40. Half the time, the servers would expect to get back

:15:11. > :16:07.to deuce from 0-40. Again from Huey. He was in a little

:16:08. > :16:15.architect Louise mud, 130 mph the first serve and he wanted to hit

:16:16. > :16:18.this even quicker. -- Hercules mud. A beautiful combination from the

:16:19. > :16:52.two. A nice block to finish it off from

:16:53. > :16:59.Huey. It is a much tighter affair in the second set. Yes, as you might

:17:00. > :17:06.expect. The French pair in set number one, they were so in century.

:17:07. > :17:11.It was a shock when they missed the ball -- in century. They have come

:17:12. > :17:20.back to bed a little bit here in set number two and so it could become

:17:21. > :17:24.quite competitive. Talking about the various partners in doubles that

:17:25. > :17:30.Mirnyi has had, and success in Mixed Doubles going to 1998 in Wimbledon,

:17:31. > :17:35.when he was the US Open winner with Serena Williams. I wonder what she

:17:36. > :17:44.is up to these days! Success with Victoria Azarenka, winning the US

:17:45. > :17:49.Open twice. And a Czech player. He has known who to pick, and they have

:17:50. > :17:54.known who to pick in Max Mirnyi and he has such doubles knowledge and it

:17:55. > :17:57.is different knowledge to singles. That are transferable skills but

:17:58. > :18:02.knowing how to play doubles is a unique skill in itself. It is

:18:03. > :18:08.interesting the chemistry required because Jamie Murray had a very hot

:18:09. > :18:15.year and he decided to play doubles with Max Mirnyi and he lasted three

:18:16. > :18:23.months, barely winning matches. And Jamie of course now is World Number

:18:24. > :18:36.1. So a lot of things go into it. Much of it is intangible.

:18:37. > :18:43.This time, it is Herbert's time to fail at the net. That was a real

:18:44. > :19:04.stretch. Sometimes, the mis-hit works

:19:05. > :19:24.wonders. Apology from Treat Huey. That was a sound that rattled around

:19:25. > :20:17.Centre Court, what have you done to us?

:20:18. > :20:31.Mahut. Each. -- at full stretch. Just about a perfectly played point

:20:32. > :20:33.I Treat Huey. It was a good first serve but he put it back into a very

:20:34. > :21:03.awkward position. Watching Mahut in a couple of the

:21:04. > :21:08.earlier rounds, I wonder if he was struggling with something. Played

:21:09. > :21:12.very well in the singles. Imagine how strong a serve he's got when he

:21:13. > :21:28.takes John Isner to 70-68. So a good hold. And who will be

:21:29. > :21:56.first to crack in the second set? Mahut just could not catch up to

:21:57. > :23:09.that serve. That is beautiful from Mahut. Just

:23:10. > :23:15.watched by Huey and Mirnyi. Yes, there was not a lot that Huey could

:23:16. > :23:56.do with that ball, it was dangerously low.

:23:57. > :24:08.That has just bounced off the commentary box. It felt like the sky

:24:09. > :24:10.was caving in. Give it back! They have to be returned here at

:24:11. > :24:41.Wimbledon. So another hold of serve in the

:24:42. > :24:49.second set, falling into a steady, regular pattern.

:24:50. > :24:56.I did think that the winners here would certainly play Julien

:24:57. > :25:05.Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin but they have gone into a fourth set

:25:06. > :25:08.on Court Number One. And it was Julien Benneteau and Edouard

:25:09. > :25:16.Roger-Vasselin who saw off Luis Suarez -- Buzz Saw off Bruno Soares

:25:17. > :25:23.and Jamie Murray. It was our commentary box which it bounced off.

:25:24. > :25:28.You do have two return them, they can't afford new balls at the All

:25:29. > :25:33.England Club. At the Australian Open you get to keep what you Americans

:25:34. > :25:38.call for eyeballs, as a souvenir. If you catch it, you get to take it

:25:39. > :25:46.home and if you don't, you have to give it back. That sounds fair! It

:25:47. > :25:50.also sounds unlikely. Again, nothing to choose between these two

:25:51. > :25:56.partnerships in the second set. The number one seeds Herbert and Mahut

:25:57. > :26:03.with the one set advantage. But we have seen some jitters on the serve

:26:04. > :26:12.of Pierre Herbert and here he is now at 3-4.

:26:13. > :26:25.Goodness, Mahut that time just did not get up and he mis-hit it. It

:26:26. > :26:41.came off the frame. Set up nicely for Huey.

:26:42. > :26:52.Well, they found themselves clustered together, Huey and Mirnyi,

:26:53. > :26:57.so the court opened up. Yes, Huey was better off leaving that one to

:26:58. > :27:20.Mirnyi. He could not hit a winner with it.

:27:21. > :27:27.That is fantastic play. Mirnyi not only played to perfection, but he

:27:28. > :27:33.followed it up with a very aggressive run. They are looking

:27:34. > :27:35.stronger, this partnership. And there is half an opening here,

:27:36. > :27:47.15-30. He is not feeling the pressure this

:27:48. > :28:15.time on serve, Herbert. That was a great return again from

:28:16. > :28:25.Mirnyi. Yes, it would venture to say that Mirnyi court BIA of Herbert as

:28:26. > :28:47.he was charging in. -- he hit the eye. Squandered opportunity.

:28:48. > :28:57.The curse of Herbert, double faults to give away the break. Mirnyi and

:28:58. > :29:05.Huey take the initiative in the second set. Such a different

:29:06. > :29:11.proposition to the first set when the French partnership were looking

:29:12. > :29:18.comfortable and hitting the ball cleanly, not many mistakes. But now

:29:19. > :29:19.Treat Huey serving for the set. I look to the umpire, but no challenge

:29:20. > :30:15.is coming. -- a look. Of the four, Trent Huey is looking

:30:16. > :30:49.the most reliable and trustworthy on serve will

:30:50. > :31:00.levelling things, one set apiece. Full of praise for Trent Huey,

:31:01. > :31:07.looking very strong out there. The most experienced man, in terms of

:31:08. > :31:13.the big stage, in Tamils. -- least experienced. -- in doubles. I

:31:14. > :31:17.totally agree, his first semifinal, probably his first time on Centre

:31:18. > :31:20.Court, and yet he is playing as though he was born here, totally

:31:21. > :31:23.comfortable, I remember the first time I played in a Wimbledon

:31:24. > :31:29.semifinal, also my first time on Centre Court, and we lost the first

:31:30. > :31:34.set of that semifinal 6-1, in about ten minutes! He has been to the

:31:35. > :31:42.quarters of the spreading open a couple of times, but Centre Court,

:31:43. > :31:47.even if it is quiet and subdued, still Centre Court, still semifinal,

:31:48. > :31:52.and he looks the senior partner. Huey has been very reliable. Look at

:31:53. > :32:07.that, look at those statistics, dominated by the number 12 seats.

:32:08. > :32:11.Really, as doubles matches so often are, it all depends upon service

:32:12. > :32:42.breaks. The box has been filling up slowly

:32:43. > :32:44.during the match, as was for the Lady semifinals. Williams looking

:32:45. > :32:49.mightily impressive. Williams against Angelique Kerber.

:32:50. > :34:19.Let, first serve. Mostly his partner with the double

:34:20. > :34:49.fault, but now, one for Mahut. Second serve which Huey should have

:34:50. > :35:10.made more of. Beautifully judged by Herbert. Hold

:35:11. > :35:32.of serve to start the third set. Did not quite get enough power on

:35:33. > :35:38.the ball, to get it out of court. Left Mirnyi stranded. Do you have a

:35:39. > :35:43.favourite victory of your four Wimbledons? The first one, of

:35:44. > :35:51.course, first major, first time that you realise, well... We did not

:35:52. > :35:52.choke, we won a major, we did it! Like a first child, always the

:35:53. > :36:04.favourite one(!) clearly, you were not the first

:36:05. > :37:08.child...! Sat nicely off the net for Herbert.

:37:09. > :37:12.Had school been 15-30, he would have played that shot a lot more

:37:13. > :37:27.conservatively. -- had the score been 15-30. Not getting too much on

:37:28. > :37:32.the Huey serve, Mahut and Herbert. Little chat between the two... Is

:37:33. > :37:37.there always a boss of the doubles partnership? Who was it between the

:37:38. > :37:43.two of you, Fleming and McEnroe? In fact, who got top billing? First of

:37:44. > :37:57.all, you cannot be serious...! That is a silly question(!) LAUGHTER

:37:58. > :38:18.If you had them alphabetically... Exactly!

:38:19. > :38:25.But you were the senior partner by four years. And I would save the

:38:26. > :38:33.first year or so, while he was still getting his footing, on the tour, he

:38:34. > :38:37.looked to me to help him out, but once he understood things, he was

:38:38. > :39:11.the leader. He was the strong one, he was good at it.

:39:12. > :39:28.Comfortable hold for Herbert and Mahut. Just over an hour on court,

:39:29. > :39:41.rattling through the games, brisk pace. Still playing on Court One, in

:39:42. > :39:44.the other semifinal. Not a huge amount of chat going on at the

:39:45. > :39:51.moment between the partnerships, it all seems to be done on court

:39:52. > :39:55.between points. Not really a lot to talk about, the French pair have

:39:56. > :40:05.been so successful this year, they know what they are trying to do.

:40:06. > :40:08.Mirnyi and Huey, certainly they have evened out the momentum, maybe even

:40:09. > :40:11.have the upper hand, and so they need to just keep doing what they

:40:12. > :41:10.have been doing over the last 30, 40 minutes. Pretty much get on with it.

:41:11. > :41:22.Max Mirnyi does hit his first serve with real authority, the double

:41:23. > :41:27.fault is not going to concern him, even a couple is not going to

:41:28. > :41:29.concern him, but three double faults, yes, that would get his

:41:30. > :41:55.attention. Now he's thinking, get your first

:41:56. > :42:05.serve in play. The last thing you want to do is hit a second serve and

:42:06. > :42:18.then it is 0-30. Confidence just a little shaken right now.

:42:19. > :43:12.Or not, he did not take any pace of that serve, at all.

:43:13. > :43:16.Not showing any signs of being rattled by a couple of double

:43:17. > :43:22.faults. Definitely not. Looking to put

:43:23. > :43:46.strength into his resolve. A little signal has been given by

:43:47. > :43:53.Huey, Mirnyi eventually settled on one plan. Very good service game in

:43:54. > :44:46.the end from Mirnyi. He has spotted the gap. Half-volley

:44:47. > :44:53.is a little benign. Sitting there, quite still. Limber. Very limber,

:44:54. > :46:16.this guy, he is a fanatic. Very special awareness from all, and

:46:17. > :46:26.the athleticism from Herbert to finish it off. Stranded in the end,

:46:27. > :46:33.Dewey, he had to cover the slice out wide. Not the easiest overhead to

:46:34. > :47:26.get. Went up the middle, see ya. Not much to him, Mahut, in terms of

:47:27. > :47:30.size and strength. But like his partner, he can generate a good bit

:47:31. > :48:34.of speed. Very best endeavours of Max Mirnyi,

:48:35. > :49:04.not getting that. Very expensive camera.

:49:05. > :49:16.So they hold, for Mahut. Still on serve.

:49:17. > :49:22.STUDIO: A long way to go in this match, and we will leave it now, if

:49:23. > :49:28.you want to continue watching, it is online, you can watch it on your

:49:29. > :49:32.tablet, or on the BBC Sport app, the website, or connected television. We

:49:33. > :49:36.will join it a little bit later as well. We are going to be looking

:49:37. > :49:40.ahead to the men's semifinals tomorrow but sedate, it was the

:49:41. > :49:46.ladies on Centre Court, and Serena Williams was not on court long, just

:49:47. > :49:51.48 minutes to dispatch Elena Vesnina, Russia, 6-2, 6- love,

:49:52. > :49:55.losing only three points on her serve, it was Serena Williams at her

:49:56. > :49:59.very best. She has been getting better as the tournament progressed,

:50:00. > :50:05.really sending out the message today, and to the Centre Court

:50:06. > :50:23.crowd, her traditional 12. -- 6-2, 6-0. She departs less than one hour.

:50:24. > :50:26.-- her traditional twirl. But it is not going to be a Williams -

:50:27. > :50:31.Williams final, Angelique Kerber has beaten Venus Williams, finding the

:50:32. > :50:37.angles, wonderful rallied to finish on.

:50:38. > :50:44.How about that, what a way to make it through to a first Wimbledon

:50:45. > :50:48.final, she has been in a Grand Slam final before, making it through to

:50:49. > :50:52.the straight year, winning that against Serena Williams. It is a

:50:53. > :50:58.rematch of the radiant open final. Angelique Kerber, playing so well

:50:59. > :51:01.today, she cannot believe it, but we can, she has not dropped a set

:51:02. > :51:08.throughout the championship so far. The Centre Court rises to her.

:51:09. > :51:12.Angelique Kerber against Serena Williams in the final. Three of the

:51:13. > :51:19.semifinalists are out on court at the moment, in the Ladies' Doubles

:51:20. > :51:23.quarterfinal. The Williams sisters, there they are, they will come out

:51:24. > :51:32.to serve to stay in the first set against Elena Vesnina and Makarova,

:51:33. > :51:38.the number four seeds. And on the red button, watching Men's Doubles

:51:39. > :51:43.semifinal, between Julien Benneteau and Roger-Vasselin and, they put out

:51:44. > :51:50.Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares, they are up against Ram and Klaasen. Best

:51:51. > :51:55.of five sets, that match is on the red button if you want to see it. We

:51:56. > :52:03.are heading into the studio, Andrew Castle is with us. We are going to

:52:04. > :52:06.look at the men's semifinal. Wonderful day yesterday. One of the

:52:07. > :52:13.greatest days on Centre Court. Really was, spectacular, Andy

:52:14. > :52:16.Murray, he did not know what time he was going to come out against

:52:17. > :52:21.Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, they had to wait ages as Roger Federer came through,

:52:22. > :52:23.now Roger Federer against Milos Raonic, no guarantee that Roger was

:52:24. > :52:28.going to be there, only played five or six tournaments all year and has

:52:29. > :52:31.not won a single one, faces Milos Raonic, who he has lost to this

:52:32. > :52:36.year, and Tomas Berdych against Andy Murray. Once Novak Djokovic went

:52:37. > :52:41.out, interesting how the dynamics changed. 2009 French Open, Rafa

:52:42. > :52:46.Nadal lost against Robin so the link, first lost their ever, and

:52:47. > :52:56.everybody thought, suddenly, it is my chance. -- against Robin

:52:57. > :52:58.Soderling. There was something invincible about Novak Djokovic

:52:59. > :53:05.coming in here, and when he lost against Sam Querrey, the holder of

:53:06. > :53:09.all four slams, that was a big thing. Roger Federer will have

:53:10. > :53:13.expected to play Novak Djokovic in the semifinal, it is a tough ask,

:53:14. > :53:17.Milos Raonic, but Roger Federer, he thought he would go out in the first

:53:18. > :53:21.week, nobody else did, remain sick story, he has played his way into

:53:22. > :53:26.contention. Outstanding tennis, Roger Federer coming back from 2-0

:53:27. > :53:30.down, against Marin Cilic, and then Andy Murray stepping onto the court,

:53:31. > :53:34.taking a 2-0 lead, looked like he was cruising to the semifinal, then

:53:35. > :53:38.Jo-Wilfried Tsonga came back, levelling the match at 2-2. In the

:53:39. > :53:42.fifth and final set, Andy Murray was at his finest.

:53:43. > :53:50.COMMENTATOR: Men's quarterfinal date, cracking line-up, getting his

:53:51. > :53:57.engine running here. He has got the ball on a string. He has not yet

:53:58. > :54:17.lost a set at this championship. He's not out of this match yet. We

:54:18. > :54:21.are going the distance on Centre Court. Beautifully done by Andy

:54:22. > :54:37.Murray. Wonderful match, what was your own

:54:38. > :54:44.description of how well you play against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga? The

:54:45. > :54:50.match was a good match. I was involved in it, so I am not...

:54:51. > :54:54.People who watch it on television and watch in the stands will have a

:54:55. > :55:01.better idea, we are just trying to concentrate on the next points. The

:55:02. > :55:06.first set was unbelievably tense, we had chances in the tie-break, the

:55:07. > :55:11.both of us. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga came back so well, the fourth set was

:55:12. > :55:16.very tight, but it was a good match. I'm glad I got through it. After you

:55:17. > :55:21.won the first game of the final set, trying to work out, what is it that

:55:22. > :55:28.you melt? We were trying to work it out... Something along the lines of,

:55:29. > :55:36.no way I am losing this match...? It could have been, I was pretty fired

:55:37. > :55:39.up! I'm not surely the words that come out of my mouth during matches,

:55:40. > :55:45.a lot of it is instinctive, adrenaline... Adrenaline rush...

:55:46. > :55:53.That particular moment was really big for me. I felt like I relaxed a

:55:54. > :55:57.little bit afterwards. Still a tense moment at the beginning of the

:55:58. > :56:02.fifth. The first game was big. What was really noticeable about the last

:56:03. > :56:06.set, the energy, how pumped up you were, I suppose if you are looking

:56:07. > :56:08.for positives and things to take forward, I should imagine the way

:56:09. > :56:14.that you finished off the match would be the way you would like to

:56:15. > :56:19.keep going through the tournament? . Positives in the match, then through

:56:20. > :56:26.a very tight first set. Second set, I played well. He came back, he hit

:56:27. > :56:32.me in the third, played better than me. The fourth set, could have gone

:56:33. > :56:40.either way. I was up 4-2, had game points. Came back from 0-40. Then

:56:41. > :56:44.had a few break points, or- three. You know, there was some good stuff

:56:45. > :56:50.there and some tough moments, but the first set, obviously, was good.

:56:51. > :56:54.Lovely exchange of smiles between the two of you at the end, what did

:56:55. > :57:00.you say to each other, if at all very much? We were just saying,

:57:01. > :57:02.great match, great fight. I have always got on very well with

:57:03. > :57:09.Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, we played a bunch in the juniors, came onto the

:57:10. > :57:22.tour at the same time obviously a great guy. One of the most exciting

:57:23. > :57:28.players on the tour. I have a lot of respect for him. When the match is

:57:29. > :57:33.going on, Ivan stays very close, still, how much do you enjoy having

:57:34. > :57:38.him back in your corner? Acrid green at these Grand Slams? Both of us are

:57:39. > :57:44.motivated to win these events, that is what the goal is. I am happy to

:57:45. > :57:49.have him back on my team, when it was first announced, I think I said,

:57:50. > :57:53.he makes my team stronger. The work I have done with Jamie Del Garda, to

:57:54. > :57:59.get me to the place where I am now, has been excellent. Hopefully,

:58:00. > :58:04.having Ivan around, and his input over the next few days, that is

:58:05. > :58:08.going to help. -- Jamie Delgado. A word about your opponent, good

:58:09. > :58:13.record here, but it is awhile since Tomas Berdych has beating you. We

:58:14. > :58:16.have never played on grass before, he has made the final here, he has

:58:17. > :58:21.beaten Novak Djokovic, he has beaten Federer on the grass, he is busy

:58:22. > :58:33.playing some good tennis this week, I have only seen a little bit, from

:58:34. > :58:39.the fourth round. He is a big guy. I will need to be on my game, for

:58:40. > :58:43.sure. Very well played, good luck in the semifinals. What a match that

:58:44. > :58:47.was, particularly at the start of the fifth set, then Andy Murray

:58:48. > :58:53.looked like he should have been in the locker room after three sets and

:58:54. > :58:56.he really had to dig. Talk about willpower, technique, the work you

:58:57. > :58:59.have done beforehand, Andy Murray believes he has done the work to win

:59:00. > :59:03.this tournament, no question that he is the best player remaining, we

:59:04. > :59:06.talk about him winning, but he has got to do it point by point,

:59:07. > :59:13.constructing the matches, you see the intensity... Remembering points

:59:14. > :59:16.and moments and feelings out there, and emotions, he must feel like this

:59:17. > :59:21.is his time, thinking back to the astray in open, Novak Djokovic stops

:59:22. > :59:27.him, first French Open, complete set of Grand Slams now, in the final,

:59:28. > :59:32.loses against Novak Djokovic. Novak Djokovic is not there, he's the best

:59:33. > :59:36.player left in it, this is Andy Murray's tournament. We can say

:59:37. > :59:41.that, we can hope that he wins, but there is more of that Jo-Wilfried

:59:42. > :59:45.Tsonga willpower and determination required, again, and again and

:59:46. > :59:49.again. Roger Federer, or whatever, Milos Raonic, one of them will be

:59:50. > :59:53.waiting, and Berdych will not go away easily because he is

:59:54. > :59:57.experienced. Tomas Berdych wanted Ivan Lendl as his coat, funnily

:59:58. > :00:01.enough, he was asked about it in the press conference and he said, he did

:00:02. > :00:06.not want to come back on tour with Andy, and he did, so thank you very

:00:07. > :00:13.much! LAUGHTER A bit frosty. They have an intense

:00:14. > :00:20.rivalry, incident at the open recently. Because he worked with the

:00:21. > :00:25.man who also used to be in Andy Murray's Daniel Vallverdu corner,.

:00:26. > :00:31.There is a place in the Wimbledon final. -- Andy Murray's corner,

:00:32. > :00:34.Daniel Vallverdu. He has said that he needs to keep the big man of

:00:35. > :00:41.balance, take Tomas Berdych stew the margins. Anything in the middle gets

:00:42. > :00:44.the treatment. -- take Tomas Berdych to the margins. A sin as it is in

:00:45. > :00:49.the middle of the court, boom, six foot four, full of muscles, he will

:00:50. > :00:54.try to blow Andy Murray off court. -- as soon as it is in the middle of

:00:55. > :00:55.the court. I liked it when Andy said, I am not going to lose this

:00:56. > :01:08.match. He has that look about him. There was a monumental comeback from

:01:09. > :01:12.seven time champion Roger Federer and this is how he finished it off

:01:13. > :01:17.against Marin Cilic, he saved three match points and look at this for a

:01:18. > :01:21.reaction. Yes, I'm still in the tournaments, I'm still number one.

:01:22. > :01:27.He showed such steely determination and he refused to lose and that has

:01:28. > :01:32.made him so special. What a champion, what a fighter and what a

:01:33. > :01:36.match for the Centre Court crowd. The great man coming back from two

:01:37. > :01:41.sets down. This is what he had to say afterwards.

:01:42. > :01:46.Roger, how would you feel physically, mentally, emotionally,

:01:47. > :01:51.after that magnificent comeback? -- how do you feel. Surprisingly good

:01:52. > :01:55.physically and unbelievably happy. It has been a first five set match

:01:56. > :02:01.in a long time. I have not played any last year. With the season I

:02:02. > :02:06.have had this year, it feels unbelievably good so I could not be

:02:07. > :02:11.happier right now. 2-0 down, do you have the belief that you will win or

:02:12. > :02:16.do doubts creep in? At that point, doubts were creeping in and this

:02:17. > :02:20.could go very quickly, I could be out of this tournament in the next

:02:21. > :02:25.25 minutes. Hold your service games and see what happens. And once I

:02:26. > :02:32.held those three break points at 0-40, I felt this could be a turning

:02:33. > :02:36.moment just because you don't come back from 0-40 very often in matches

:02:37. > :02:41.and it could mean a mental turnaround for him and for me. That

:02:42. > :02:45.is what happened, I had a good break after that and in the fourth, I know

:02:46. > :02:50.now I have another 30 minutes in me and he could drop his level or I

:02:51. > :02:56.could increase mine. It was very hard because Marin was playing great

:02:57. > :03:06.and serving unbelievably. " balls -- just picking up balls. But I was

:03:07. > :03:10.hitting the aces and he was not. I think I started to read it better

:03:11. > :03:13.and he was dropping his level a touch and then I had to get lucky

:03:14. > :03:19.and I did at the right moments. Because he had a good record and he

:03:20. > :03:24.did everything great and I feel sorry for Marin to some extent. It

:03:25. > :03:28.went to the five set and the last time at Wimbledon was the final

:03:29. > :03:34.against Novak in 2014. Your season this year has been unique, not the

:03:35. > :03:37.preparation you would normally have. How satisfied with your performances

:03:38. > :03:45.have you been so far? I'm very satisfied. Also surprised to be

:03:46. > :03:50.honest. The first week went so well. I really did not believe there was

:03:51. > :03:55.going to make it this far, to be quite honest, so it has been an

:03:56. > :03:58.unusual Wimbledon for me. I preparation has been so rough and I

:03:59. > :04:03.have had a tough time since February so to be in the semifinals is

:04:04. > :04:07.uplifting and it gives me believe I can maybe go one step further

:04:08. > :04:13.because I have to take one step at a time. The semifinals, they will not

:04:14. > :04:17.underestimate anybody. Raonic has done great and he beat me in

:04:18. > :04:22.Brisbane some it is going to be a tough semifinal.

:04:23. > :04:26.It is tough but let's celebrate what we saw yesterday because Federer

:04:27. > :04:30.talked about how he did not know where he was physically and he just

:04:31. > :04:35.got better and better and he was running everything down. That is the

:04:36. > :04:39.problem for everyone. His 11th semifinal. Feeling fit and fresh at

:04:40. > :04:43.the end of a five set match because he has not played tennis this year.

:04:44. > :04:47.He only played 16 matches across six months of play because of various

:04:48. > :04:54.reasons, knee surgery which is not easy to recover from but at 34 and

:04:55. > :04:59.after his career, it is really not. And a bad back. So just a handful of

:05:00. > :05:07.matches, and that sort of much, even feel, I'm invincible and back to the

:05:08. > :05:13.old Roger. He also talked about 3-3. 0-40! You remember every point just

:05:14. > :05:17.like Murray. Those are the moments. He recognises them and he explained

:05:18. > :05:21.with instinct again. I spoke to him last year and I said, you are

:05:22. > :05:25.experienced, how do you use that? He said, I wish I was not so

:05:26. > :05:30.experienced, I know the implications of every moment, and want to play

:05:31. > :05:34.like an 18-year-old and react with instinct, make mistakes but express

:05:35. > :05:38.myself. That is lovely and the essence of his enthusiasm, even now

:05:39. > :05:44.he wants to play like a kid and he can't believe he is here. We can, it

:05:45. > :05:49.seems obvious, we used it, but it is a pleasant surprise for him, so

:05:50. > :05:55.watch out. He has overcome one big serve and he has another waiting.

:05:56. > :06:01.This is big! Cilic had a delivery but Raonic's server is frightening.

:06:02. > :06:04.He has lost one set this year serving for it. He doesn't lose his

:06:05. > :06:10.serve at big moments and with John McEnroe in his corner and John

:06:11. > :06:15.McEnroe, he has a lot of experience and he is using his game well at the

:06:16. > :06:21.moment the very dangerous effect. We look forward to tomorrow. But before

:06:22. > :06:25.that, we have something different because you don't have to go far to

:06:26. > :06:29.find a significant anniversary at Wimbledon but this is special to us

:06:30. > :06:34.as it is the 40th anniversary of our theme tune to Wimbledon. In a

:06:35. > :06:39.special tribute, BBC music has commissioned dance music act of it

:06:40. > :06:52.all to put their unique take on this iconic track. -- orbital.

:06:53. > :08:05.You can't be serious, man! You can't be serious!

:08:06. > :08:20.I'm going to try this and it is not going to be easy! Wonderful shot!

:08:21. > :08:25.Outstanding, isn't it? The ultimate dream has been realised.

:08:26. > :08:33.The waiting is over! Have you ever seen anything like this before? That

:08:34. > :08:37.was genius. He was making his way up to the players box. The Queen of

:08:38. > :08:40.Centre Court once more. History in the making. You can't

:08:41. > :08:45.think of Wimbledon without that music but what of the original is

:08:46. > :08:48.the Richardson has been speaking with the composer of the track that

:08:49. > :08:56.has graced our coverage for 40 years.

:08:57. > :09:19.HE HUME WIMBLEDON THEME TUNE. It was essentially written for what

:09:20. > :09:24.we would call live music, you could almost call it off-the-shelf.

:09:25. > :09:28.Rational people like myself were hired by publishers and you would

:09:29. > :09:32.have good orchestras and studios and you would have the rights to music.

:09:33. > :09:37.I used to do that every day of my life, a range or compose music. It

:09:38. > :09:43.is called light and June four, it is a piece of light music with a tune

:09:44. > :09:47.to it. -- tuneful. Catchy phrases if you like. It was really quite simple

:09:48. > :09:53.to write. Simple? It is a great theme tune. The irony is, it is

:09:54. > :09:57.simple, but if you examine it, it is a lot cleverer than you think

:09:58. > :10:01.because it changes key all the time. WIMBLEDON THEME TUNE.

:10:02. > :10:10.The trick here was that it caught your ear. It was like the brass type

:10:11. > :10:16.effect with this in it. All those things, they were devices. And they

:10:17. > :10:20.were fine and they were part of the time. You would not write that now,

:10:21. > :10:26.it is old-fashioned. At the time, it was of the moment. But you would say

:10:27. > :10:31.it sounded old-fashioned, in which case, why are we still using it? It

:10:32. > :10:39.is not old-fashioned! We like the legacy, it has been around 40 years.

:10:40. > :10:43.When musicians found out I wrote these sports tunes, they grew up as

:10:44. > :10:48.children listening to it and to them, it wasn't rubbish. It wasn't

:10:49. > :10:56.jazz but properly written music. It is easy, when you do it, you have no

:10:57. > :11:01.idea where it is going to end up. How long did it take to do? To write

:11:02. > :11:05.to the tune would have been less than an hour and to arrange it would

:11:06. > :11:10.be half a day from composing to arranging. I could not do it in a

:11:11. > :11:15.week now! Don't Commission me, it would take me a week and I would not

:11:16. > :11:20.create that. If a BBC producer had not picked it up, we could be

:11:21. > :11:23.listening to it in a left, in a supermarket, on the end of a phone!

:11:24. > :11:29.I had music like that used in films and somebody gets into a lift and my

:11:30. > :11:33.music is playing. Thank you very much for writing some fantastic BBC

:11:34. > :11:38.signature tunes. Thank you. I met him earlier,

:11:39. > :11:41.fantastic, I wanted it is my ring tone but can you imagine scrambling

:11:42. > :11:45.in your hand back in a packed supermarket and they would go, she

:11:46. > :11:51.would have that! But must be Sue Barker! It is funny what comes back,

:11:52. > :11:55.Jerry Williams who we lost. And these images as well as the music,

:11:56. > :12:00.it is instant, in recognition of happy times and great days ahead for

:12:01. > :12:08.us here. And the Grandstand music as well is another iconic tune. Yes,

:12:09. > :12:13.that one! The first time they played that, I freaked! I really going to

:12:14. > :12:16.say hello in a moment? It is special and everybody remembers Wimbledon

:12:17. > :12:20.because of and when I hear it on the first Monday, it makes me very

:12:21. > :12:26.nervous! Sports night, I can't remember that. This is not name

:12:27. > :12:31.might -- this is not name that tune! Thank you, Andrew. We look ahead to

:12:32. > :12:39.tomorrow and the order of play and the -- and first on Centre Court is

:12:40. > :12:43.Roger Federer against Milos Raonic and Tomas Berdych against Andy

:12:44. > :12:48.Murray. That will be at one o'clock. We was at our coverage tomorrow as

:12:49. > :12:56.well. So today at Wimbledon, it is Lady semifinals day and Clare

:12:57. > :13:00.Balding will have the action for you tonight -- ladies semifinals. We

:13:01. > :13:07.have more tennis on BBC Two but today, it was the ladies semifinals,

:13:08. > :13:10.Serena will face defending champion Angelique Kerber against the

:13:11. > :13:13.Australian champion. That will be nice, goodbye.

:13:14. > :13:17.Good afternoon, the sunshine beats down on Centre Court for the second

:13:18. > :13:25.afternoon in a row. Huge applause. Rena will aim is, a 32nd Grand Slam

:13:26. > :13:29.semifinal. -- huge applause. Rena Williams. It is hard to know what to

:13:30. > :13:36.say when I see a demolition job like this. As simple and as easy and

:13:37. > :13:42.straightforward as you could possibly imagine. Can Venus make it

:13:43. > :13:47.to two out of two? It is a huge challenge against the current

:13:48. > :13:56.Australian Open champion. A super rally. Suddenly, the match is coming

:13:57. > :14:03.alive! Angelique Kerber not hanging around to feel sympathy for her

:14:04. > :14:04.opponent. At the age of 28, she has reinvented herself, a