London, ENGLAND – With the Queen of England looking on from the Royal Box on Centre Court, Team Yonex star Elena Rybakina (KAZ) stayed composed and controlled on the Wimbledon grass as she reached the semi-finals of the women’s singles.

It was a regal performance from Rybakina, a former champion at the All England Club, who has often played her best tennis when competing on the sport’s original surface. The head-to-toe Yonex ambassador, who lifted the Venus Rosewater Dish for the first time in 2022, needed just over an hour for a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Elina Svitolina. With Team Yonex athletes Jasmine Paolini (ITA) and Donna Vekic (CRO) advancing on the other side of the draw, three of the four semi-finalists in the women’s singles are swinging Yonex racquets. As Marketa Vondrousova (CZE) was the champion on Centre Court last summer, Team Yonex stars have performed to a very high level on the grass over the last three seasons.

On a dry afternoon, with the Centre Court roof open for the first time in days, Rybakina produced seven aces and 28 winners against Svitolina to reach her second Wimbledon semi-final. No woman has served more aces this fortnight than Rybakina, who has already hit 31. After another performance that illustrated that her powerful serve and groundstrokes are perfectly suited to the grass, Rybakina has now won 19 of her first 21 appearances at Wimbledon, giving her a winning percentage above 90, which is higher than almost any other woman in the history of The Championships.

In another indication of Rybakina’s class on the grass, she has dropped a total of just nine games in her last three appearances at this tournament. Rybakina, who is seeded fourth this summer, was the only former champion who advanced beyond the opening round this year. She only dropped one set on the way to the semi-finals, which was in her second-round match, an all-Yonex showdown against Laura Siegemund (GER).

 Elena Rybakina (KAZ) | VCORE 100 [LINK] / POLYTOUR FIRE 125 [LINK] / ECLIPSION [LINK] / APPAREL [LINK]

Jasmine Paolini (ITA) | VCORE 100 [LINK] / POLYTOUR PRO 120 [LINK]

Donna Vekic (CRO) | VCORE 100 [LINK] / POLYTOUR REV 125 [LINK]