Manic Monday Notebook: Querrey, Federer, Raonic move into quarters

They call it Manic Monday for a reason. The traditionally wild fourth-round slate lived up to its name and billing on the first day of the second week, and after the women put on an excellent show in the first part of the day, the men exhibited some theatrics of their own in the latter half. Here are three of the notable happenings on Day 7 at the All England Club.

Sam Querrey [24] d. Kevin Anderson, 5-7, 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-7 (11), 6-3

An American man in the Wimbledon quarterfinals? You better believe it. With his second straight five-set win—the 29-year-old upset Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in five sets in the previous round—Querrey advanced to the final eight at the All England Club for the second year in a row.

The Californian didn’t make it easy—he rarely does—finally defeating the South African on his sixth match point. Both men notched 31 aces in the marathon on Court 18. Anderson, who reached the fourth round of the French Open last month, failed to get over the hump at the grass-court Slam yet again. (He’s now made the fourth round three times, but has never been to the quarters.)

Querrey, on the other hand, is on the verge of a career breakthrough. The last American man standing has never been past the quarterfinals of a Slam in 42 main-draw appearances. He can reach his first semifinal with a victory over top-ranked Andy Murray, who he’ll meet on Wednesday.

Roger Federer [3] d. Grigor Dimitrov [13], 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

Roger rolled to another rout on Monday, defeating the Bulgarian in straight sets on Centre Court. Federer, who has yet to drop a set en route to the quarterfinals, is now 28-2 on the year and 6-0 lifetime against Dimitrov, who was once dubbed “Baby Fed” for his similarity to the Swiss legend’s playing style.

There was nothing similar about these two in this one, though, as Federer set the tone early and controlled the match from start to finish. What else is new?

With his routine win, the 18-time Grand Slam champion advanced to his 15th quarterfinal at the All England Club. Let that sink in for a minute…

More impressive, of course, is the fact that Federer has won this tournament seven times, and would set the record for the most championships at the Championships with an eighth on Sunday. His chances of capturing No. 8 were greatly improved later in the day when Rafael Nadal, who he could have met in the final, was stunned by Gilles Muller in one of the most compelling matches in recent memory.

Federer’s next opponent, though, is a daunting one. Fed will have to get past Milos Raonic, last year’s runner-up, for a spot in the semifinals. You might remember that the Canadian came back from two-sets-to-one down to beat the Swiss in the semis here last year.

Milos Raonic [6] d. Alexander Zverev [10], 4-6, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1

This was projected by many to be the match of the day—Rafa and Muller took those honors by a wide margin, as it turned out—but this contest between the up-and-coming German and last year’s runner-up didn’t disappoint. Raonic was a match away from winning this tournament a year ago, but he’s had a largely underwhelming season. Zverev, on the other hand, is perhaps the game’s brightest young star, and many believe it’s just a matter of time before the 20-year-old hoists a trophy at a major.

Zverev beat Raonic in straight sets earlier this year in Rome, and in their second meeting on Monday the German took two of the first three sets. But the big-hitting Canadian showed fight and resolve that we’ve rarely seen from him in 2017, leveling at two sets apiece in a tough fourth set and then dominating the decider. He clinched the match at love, firing three aces in that final game. It was an encouraging comeback from the 26-year-old, who seems to be off everyone’s radar despite what he did here in 2016.

Raonic reached the quarterfinals in Melbourne in January and has now made it to the Wimbledon quarters in three of the past four years.

He’ll play Federer next, who he defeated in the Wimbledon semis last year.

—GRAND SLAM WEEK: WatchWimbledon Primetime on Tennis Channel, and catch up on the other 2017 Grand Slams on Tennis Channel Plus

—Watch encores from the 2017 French Open and Australian Open on Tennis Channel Plus, including matches like the AO Final showdown between Serena & Venus Williams**