Wimbledon 2021 witnessed a stunning result as Poland's Hubert Hurkacz defeated 39-year-old Roger Federer to storm into the semi-finals. Hurkacz defeated Federer 6-3, 7-6, 6-0 in straight sets in the quarterfinals and became the second Polish male player to make it to the semis of a Grand Slam. Jerzy Janowicz was the first male player from Poland to enter the Grand Slam semis, he achieved the feat during Wimbledon 2013. Hurkacz, who did not drop a single game in the third set, halted Federer’s search for his ninth Wimbledon title. Hubert Hurkacz Knocks Roger Federer Out of Wimbledon 2021, Advances to his First Grand Slam Semi-Final.
As per ATP’s official website, Hurkacz began playing tennis at age five. Hurkacz is ranked 18th in the ATP rankings. The 24-year-old was born on February 11, 1997. He turned pro in 2015. Here’s all you need to know about the Polish youngster who showed the exit door to veteran Federer.
Watch: Winning Moment
And they say to never meet your heroes…@HubertHurkacz knocks out his idol, eight-time champion Roger Federer, in straight sets to advance to his first Grand Slam semi-final#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Qri1uriPDF
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 7, 2021
# Hurkacz achieved career-high No. 16 ranking after beating 5 seeds at 2021 Miami to become 1st ATP Masters 1000 champion from Poland.
# He captured ATP 250 titles at 2019 Winston-Salem and 2021 Delray Beach, becoming 2nd Polish tour-level champion in Open Era (Fibak: 15 titles from 1976-82).
# He defeated Dominic Thiem and went 3-0 in singles for Team Poland at 2020 ATP Cup.
# In 2nd event as a team, won 1st ATP Tour doubles title at 2020 ATP Masters 1000 Paris w/Auger-Aliassime.
# Hubert won Brest Challenger title in final week of 2018 ATP Race to Milan to qualify for Next Gen ATP Finals.
Interestingly, growing up Hurkacz idolised Federer and now he registers an impressive win against his idol. The 24-year-old will now either face Matteo Berrettini or Felix Auger Aliassime in the semi-final.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 07, 2021 11:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).