By Toby Davis LONDON (Reuters) -Twice defending champion Carlos Alcaraz tamed the towering Taylor Fritz to reach his third straight Wimbledon final, rediscovering his A-game when it mattered most to battle past the American in a 6-4 5-7 6-3 7-6(6) victory on Friday.

Amanda Anisimova ousted the world's No. 1 female tennis player, Aryna Sabalenka, on Thursday in the Wimbledon semi-finals — shocking the sports world as the American moves onto the finals. "Amazing Amanda!" sports announcers called, as the 12th-ranked player beat Sabalenka 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to nab her first-ever spot on center court.

Men’s singles semifinals are the highlight at Friday’s Wimbledon Tennis Championships, with Taylor Fritz vs. Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner vs. Novak Djokovic on the morning docket.

Over 6,000 restrings, tiny variances in string tension and customized logos: How Wimbledon gets its stars' rackets ready for play.

The general consensus is it is all to do with rhythm and comfort. Flavio Cobolli said at Wimbledon was "normal" for players to keep tennis balls in their shorts, adding it felt more "comfortable". Teenager Mirra Andreeva said it was "easier to keep the focus between serves" - as having a ball more readily available means the second serve is sooner.

Alexander Zverev has pulled out of the Swiss Open in Gstaad, organisers of the ATP 250 event said on Thursday, just over a week after the German world number three crashed out of Wimbledon in the first round.

A first eye-opening, record-breaking sale occurred June 27 when Alcaraz’s 2024 Topps Royalty one-of-a-kind autographed card with the inscription “2024 Indian Wells Champ” and bearing the knob of his used racket in the card sold for $222,000 through Fanatics Collect. It only took one day for that record sale to be broken.

Tennis fans around the world are keeping Grigor Dimitrov in their thoughts this Friday. Earlier this week, Dimitrov was dealt the most heartbreaking blow of his career. Despite leading 6-3, 7-5 over world No.