Serena Williams no longer wants to obsess about elusive Grand Slam “number 24” and Simona Halep is desperate to win Wimbledon more than to stop the American reaching that milestone but there will be no place for either to hide in Saturday’s final.

Defending champion Novak Djokovic reached his sixth Wimbledon final Friday as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal prepared to meet at the All England Club for the first time since their epic 2008 title showdown.

The last time Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal met at Wimbledon, a dark gloom had descended as the Spaniard was crowned champion beneath a shower of flashing bulbs. It was an iconic moment for tennis, a match widely considered to mark the pinnacle of the sport.

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal battle for a place in the Wimbledon final on Friday, 11 years after they mesmerised Centre Court in a Grand Slam championship match widely regarded as the greatest ever played.

Simona Halep is the last woman standing between Serena Williams and achieving her long held ambition of equalling Margaret Court’s Grand Slam title record after both recorded easy victories in their Wimbledon semifinals on Thursday.

Simona Halep became the first Romanian woman to reach the Wimbledon final on Friday but then found herself answering questions -- about snooker.

Roger Federer chalked up another monumental milestone to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals on Wednesday, recovering to beat Japan's Kei Nishikori in four sets and become the first man to record a century of singles wins at any Grand Slam.

Top seed Novak Djokovic recovered from an edgy start to deliver a devastating display that crushed the spirit of 21st-seeded Belgian David Goffin in straight sets on Wednesday and sent the defending champion surging into the Wimbledon semifinals.

Wimbledon got its first 12-12 final set tie-break on Tuesday when Henri Kontinen and John Peers defeated Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in a men’s doubles match.

Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal eased into the Wimbledon quarterfinals on Monday as the sport’s Grand Slam heavyweights continued to deliver blow after blow to their wilting lightweight rivals.

Serena Williams clubbed her way into the Wimbledon semifinals, draining the last drop of fight from fellow American Alison Riske before sealing a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 win in a rip-roaring Centre Court contest on Tuesday.

Ash Barty's surprise fourth-round defeat to unheralded American Alison Riske at Wimbledon was a bitter pill to swallow after her giddy ride to the top of world tennis but the Australian said it would only fortify her for the rest of the year.

Eight-time Wimbledon singles champion Roger Federer posted yet more landmarks on Saturday as all the main contenders

World number one Ashleigh Barty booked her maiden place in the fourth round at Wimbledon on Saturday while Serena Williams made the second week for the 16th time.

Jose Mourinho believes Rafael Nadal would have made “a fantastic footballer” had he not chosen to become one of the greatest tennis players of all time.

Rafael Nadal may not end up winning a third Wimbledon singles title but he will take joy from having beaten his ‘bete noire’ Nick Kyrgios in an engrossing but bad-tempered grudge match on Thursday.

Four-time champion Novak Djokovic reached the Wimbledon third round for the 11th successive year on Wednesday.

Three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka was knocked out of Wimbledon on Wednesday, falling in five sets to 6ft 11in (2.1m) Reilly Opelka as defending champion Novak Djokovic waited to push his bid for a fifth title.

Cori Gauff, at 15 the youngest ever qualifier for Wimbledon, is not content with just beating five-time champion Venus Williams --

American 15-year-old Cori Gauff stole the show on the opening day of Wimbledon with a debut victory over five-time champion and her inspiration Venus Williams.