Wimbledon 2021: Pliskova and Sabalenka into semis, Barty to come – live!

11.36am EDT 11:36

And the thing is, Barty can play a lot better than she has so far. If she wants to win this thing, she’s going to have to.

11.34am EDT 11:34

I’ve been really impressed with Barty over the last week and, if I’m honest, I’m not sure what Tomljanovic has for her. But that’s why we play: to find out.

11.19am EDT 11:19

Barty and Tomljanovic should be with us in the next few minutes – I’ll be back with you as soon as that’s so.

11.17am EDT 11:17

Tell you what though, Kerber v Barty with the winner to play Sabalenka sounds absolutely banging to me.

11.16am EDT 11:16

Kerber says she enjoys every moment at Wimbledon and knows that Muchova is a good grass-court player. She then thanks the crowd – I can’t imagine what its been like competing in front of empty stands – and talks about how hard she’s worked to enable her to leave her heart on the court. It doesn’t matter who she plays next, she reckons, but she’s looking forward to it.

11.12am EDT 11:12

Kerber [25] beats Muchova [19] 6-2 6-3!

Kerber is a serious problem. She didn’t play as well today as she did in the previous two rounds, but she got the job done with something to spare, and will meet Barty or Tomljanovic in the semis. It’s an absolute buzz to see her back in body and soul, and no one left in the draw knows their way around a grass court better than she does.

11.09am EDT 11:09

Kerber accelerates to 30-0 but Muchova yanks her back to 30-all; can she make it happen? Well, she’s got a second serve to go at and it’s a real pat too … but the return isn’t good enough and eventually she goes long, giving Kerber match point. Kerber, though, goes long herself, taking us to deuce…

11.06am EDT 11:06

Muchova’s not had much for Kerber, but she forces her to serve for it by performing the splits to catch a terrific pass on the volley, diverting a winner towards the opposite corner. Muchova 2-6 3-5 Kerber

11.04am EDT 11:04

On No1, Kerber now leads Muchova 6-2 5-2, with Muchova serving to stay in the match.

11.03am EDT 11:03

Ah man, that was truly beautiful to see– Sabalenka is so, so talented and so, so loveable. Her consistent failure in majors, though, made you worry she didn’t quite have the mental strength to win the biggies, but today, she came out against an opponent playing the best tennis of her life and blasted her off the court. Then, when the time came to see it out, she didn’t choke as might’ve been expected, and I can’t wait to see her again.

11.00am EDT 11:00

Sabalenka says it’s always hard to beat Jabeur, a great player and person, and she’s so happy to win. She thanks the crowd for making it special, noting that it might look like everything’s working for her, but it’s not as simple as that. She is, though, enjoying every minute of her run and reckons Pliskova to be a great player with a great serve who’s good on grass.

10.58am EDT 10:58

Kerber, meanwhile has broken Muchova and now leads 4-2. She’s close to the last four too.

10.57am EDT 10:57

Sabalenka [2] beats Jabeur [21] 6-4 6-3!

Power beats touch, and Sabalenka is into the last four of a major for the first time! She’ll play Pliskova, and it’ll be a serious performance that stops her if she keeps this up.

Updated at 10.57am EDT

10.56am EDT 10:56

At 30-15, Sabalenka leaps into a forehand that’s slightly behind her and slips, allowing Jabeur to hit a winner into the empty court. We see a flash of desperation and despair pass Sabalenka’s face – past disappointments are not far from the surface – and when Jabeur hits a forehand winner, she’s facing break-back point. But she saves it well, then a service winner raises match point!

10.54am EDT 10:54

Meanwhile, Kerber has broken Muchova back and held too, so she leads 3-2 and by one set to love.

10.53am EDT 10:53

And she gets to 0-30 too, but Jabeur finds a service winner, then another – that’s outstanding behaviour. But a backhand return, annihilated inside-out, earns her break point … saved with another booming serve. Jabeur, though, is running out of ideas, and a netted drop that looked an easy way out of the point hands Sabalenka another go … and this time she takes it, turning up the volume to hammer a bakchand winner that allows her to serve for the match. She is playing beautifully. Jabeur 4-6 3-5 Sabalenka

10.49am EDT 10:49

A love hold for Sabalenka underlines her superiority in the match, and she’s loading up the pressure now. If she can win the first point of Jabeur’s next service game, we might be close to the end. Jabeur 4-6 3-4 Sabalenka

10.47am EDT 10:47

Sabalenka is hinting at another hot streak, pushing Jabeur to 40-30 on her serve. But Jabeur clinches the hold courtesy of a trademark drop, and knows she needs to hang in the set because at some point things will get nervy. Jabeur 4-6 3-3 Sabalenka

10.45am EDT 10:45

“Earlier on in the tournament, I questioned Sabalenka as number two seed,” tweets @Mysteron_Voice, “and you very politely pointed out the error of my ways. It being women’s tennis, though, will she be able to maintain this level until Saturday afternoon?”

I’ve not a clue! But this is by far the best I’ve seen Sabalenka play at a major – not just this afternoon – so perhaps the kopeck has dropped.

10.42am EDT 10:42

It’s kicking off on No1, where Muchova has broken for 2-1, while Sabalenka thinks she’s held for 3-2 only for Jabeur to challenge, late, and discover that she contacted the outermost fibre of the line. Sabalenka, though, continues cleansing the cover off it, and eventually elicits the backhand error. She now leads 3-2 and by one set to love.

10.41am EDT 10:41

My internet drops out, and in the time it takes it to return Muchova and Kerber both hold, so they’re at 1-1 in set two, while Jabeur and Sabalenka are at 2-2.

10.34am EDT 10:34

Don’t mess with Ons Jabeur! No sooner broken than breaking, she draws Sabalenka to the net with a drop and the riposte drops long. That was a classically meek Saba surrender, and might that switch momentum in this match? Jabeur 4-6 2-1 Sabalenka

Updated at 10.40am EDT

10.31am EDT 10:31

Kerber [25] wins the first set against Muchova [19] 6-2!

The only Wimbledon champion left in the draw is looking ominous and scary.

Angelique Kerber during her quarter-final match. Photograph: REX/Shutterstock

Updated at 11.10am EDT

10.30am EDT 10:30

Jabeur’s service first service-game of set two could be key, and Sablenka races to 0-40. As her opponent did just a few moments ago, she closes to 30-40, but then sent to the forehand corner, she slips and nets! Sabalenka is four holds away from the semis! Jabeur 4-6 0-2 Sabalenka

Updated at 10.40am EDT

10.28am EDT 10:28

Kerber looks to have just that bit too much for Muchova, again forced to save a break point before holding again. She’s navigating the big moments really well. Kerber 5-2 Muchova

10.26am EDT 10:26

Immediately, Jabeur makes her change, chipping her first return of the set to take the pace off the ball. It’s enough to win her the point and she’s soon at 0-40 – holding it down to take the first set then tossing her serve at the start of the second would be classic Saba – but not today. She makes deuce, then eventually closes out thanks to a pair of substantial serves. Jabeur 4-6 0-1 Sabalenka

10.21am EDT 10:21

Back on No1, Kerber still has her break, leading Muchova 4-2. Outside, it’s caning it down with rain.

Updated at 10.22am EDT

10.20am EDT 10:20

Sabalenka [2] wins the first set against Jabeur [21] 6-4!

Yet another crime against humanity of a forehand sends Jabeur to the forehand corner, and she can’t get her racket around the ball! That’s a great set from Sabalenka, and Jabeur needs to change something or hope she chokes.

Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus plays a return to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur. Photograph: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP

Updated at 10.22am EDT

10.19am EDT 10:19

Now then. Sabalenka waits for a second serve and, with a yell that’s almost a cackle, she runs around her backhand to punish a forehand winner down the line that gives her set point … so Jabeur rattles down an ace. Sabalenka, though, is on, and a nails backhand return facilitates a backhand winner for a second go … but this time she nets. Never mind: a transcendental forehand earns another shy … only for her to go wide with a far more makeable one! Jabeur then spurns two game points and we must just be at a crucial juncture … and as I type that, a half-court ball allows a backhand winner from Sabalenka, which raises her fourth set point, ruined with a long backhand. Still, here come the fifth…