Elina Svitolina Stuns Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon

Top-seeded Iga Swiatek was stunned by Ukrainian wild card Elina Svitolina on Centre Court 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-2 on Tuesday to reach the semifinals at the All England Club for the second time in four years.

Svitolina, 28, trailed 4-2 in the opening set and struggled to get her serve going in blustery conditions as Swiatek moved to a 5-3 lead. But after losing the next two points, momentum suddenly swung Svitolina's way as she went on to win 16 of the next 18 points to grab the first set and leave a stunned Swiatek wondering what had gone wrong.

"Honestly, it's hard for me to, like, point (to) one thing what failed exactly," Swiatek said. "I think Elina was just overall playing aggressively and giving it all in every shot."

The interlude gave Swiatek a chance to reevaluate her tactics, and the four-time major champion fiercely fought to win the second-set tiebreak on an errant backhand by Svitolina.

Svitolina kept believing as she broke for a 2-1 lead in the final set and then was dominant the rest of the way to end Swiatek's 14-match winning streak.

"First of all I'm going to have a beer, probably," Svitolina said during her on-court interview. "At the beginning of the tournament, if someone would tell me that I will be in the semifinal and beating world No. 1, I would just say that they're crazy."

Svitolina's victory is a major upset, as Swiatek was the overwhelming favourite to win the tournament. However, Svitolina played some of her best tennis of the year and was able to take advantage of Swiatek'suncharacteristically inconsistent play.

Svitolina's next opponent will be Marketa Vondrousova, who defeated Jessica Pegula in three sets. Vondrousova is a former French Open finalist and has been playing some of her best tennis of the year at Wimbledon.

The semifinal between Svitolina and Vondrousova is a toss-up, as both players are capable of winning on their day. However, Svitolina's momentum and confidence will be a major factor in the match.