2022 Wimbledon: Tatjana Maria beats Niemeier, reaches maiden major semi-final
Germany's Tatjana Maria qualified for her maiden Grand Slam semi-final after beating Jule Niemeier at 2022 Wimbledon. Claiming a 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 win, the world number 103 has reached this stage for the first time. Earlier in the tournament, Maria upset Jelena Ostapenko after saving two match points. Maria is the second European player to reach a major semi-final after turning 34.
A look at the stats of the match
Maria won a total of 109 points, while Niemeier claimed 39 winners in the match. The former smashed four aces compared to Niemeier's three. Maria won 67% points (35/52) on the first serve and 56% points (30/54) on the second. She won 71% (5/7) of the break points. Her opponent Niemeier recoded 11 double faults and 54 unforced errors.
WATCH: The winning moment!
A look at the key numbers
As stated, Maria has become the second European player to reach a Grand Slam semi-final after turning 34. Mirjana Lucic is the only other woman to have achieved this feat at the 2017 Australian Open. Maria has become the fourth woman to reach the Wimbledon semis ranked outside the top-100 since 1984 (Mirjana Lucic in 1999, Jie Zheng in 2008, Serena Williams in 2018).
The incredible journey of Maria
It is to note that Maria gave birth to her second child in April 2021. A year later, she bagged her second WTA title in Colombia after beating Laura Pigossi in the final. And now, Maria has become the first mother of two to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals in this century. The world number 103 has a win-loss record of 36-16 in 2022.
Maria had achieved this feat
As per Opta, Maria had become the seventh woman in the Open Era to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon after turning 34. The others are Billie Jean King, Virginia Wade, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Serena Williams, and Venus Williams.
