Wimbledon: Quarterfinal Preview

There were no big upsets in the fourth round as all of the favorites moved on. Tommy Haas, Lleyton Hewitt, and Juan Carlos Ferrero were able to continue their dream runs while Roger Federer got through a French Open final rematch with Robin Soderling to reach his 21st consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal. But the story of the day belonged to the the roof finally closing inon Centre Court and Andy Murray defeating Stan Wawrinka in the latest-match ever held in Wimbledon in 5 sets.

Quarterfinalists

Andy Roddick [6] vs. Lleyton Hewitt
Andy Murray [3] vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero
Novak Djokovic [4] vs. Tommy Haas [24]
Roger Federer [2] vs. Ivo Karlovic [22]

There are lots of juicy pairings with these final eight players. Former Grand Slam champions Roddick and Hewitt will try to outlast one another in hopes of retaining their previous peak forms. Djokovic and Haas will have a Halle rematch in which Haas won. Murray will have to derail Ferrero's best run at Wimbledon to keep his nation's hope alive. Finally, will Federer be able to withstand Karlovic lethal serve?

Prediction: Your semifinalists will be Roddick, Murray, Haas, and Federer.

For the women, shockingly, the top four seeds are still in the tournament. Safina was able to keep her nerves in check to defeat former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo while the Williams sisters lost a total of six games to move on. Two of those games were won by Ana Ivanovic who had to retire due to an inner leg injury leaving the court in tears. The fourth round also saw the end of American Melanie Oudin's Cinderella run.

Quarterfinalists

Dinara Safina [1] vs. Sabine Lisicki
Venus Williams [3] vs. Agnieszka Radwanska [11]
Elena Dementieva [4] vs. Francesca Schiavone
Serena Williams [2] vs. Victoria Azarenka [8]

If there's one player who can derail an all-Williams final, it would be Azarenka so Serena will have a lot to handle. Safina is actually the underdog in that match up while both Venus and Dementieva should be able to cruise their matches.

Prediction: Your semifinalists will be the top four seeds.