By Chris Oddo | Tuesday, July 7, 2015

 

Roger Federer is bidding to reach his 37th career Grand Slam semifinal when he faces Gilles Simon on Wednesday at Wimbledon.

Photo Source: Stephen White/Camerasport

The men’s singles draw is down to the last eight. Here’s some relevant numbers and insights to help guide you through what promises to be a fantastic day at SW19.

The lineup:

No. 1 Novak Djokovic (SRB) v No. 9 Marin Cilic (CRO)
No. 2 Roger Federer (SUI) v No. 12 Gilles Simon (FRA)
No. 3 Andy Murray (GBR) v Vasek Pospisil (CAN)
No. 4 Stan Wawrinka (SUI) v No. 21 Richard Gasquet (FRA)

1. Novak Djokovic is 12-0 vs. Marin Cilic: This stat favors the Serb, don’t you think? But Cilic has taken a set from Djokovic all three times that he has faced Djokovic at majors. Plus, Cilic pushed the Serb to five sets last year in the quarterfinals.

2. Switzerland vs. France is one half of the action: Wouldn’t Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon love to get a bit of revenge against team Switzerland for the Davis Cup defeat they suffered in last year's final at Wimbledon on Wednesday? Maybe, but they’ll have to overcome pretty significant odds to do it. Federer has won five in a row vs. Simon and he’s the world’s best grass-court player. Wawrinka has split his two matches against Gasquet, but the Swiss has become a two-time Grand Slam champion since the last time he met Gasquet. It will be a tough ask for both Frenchman, but we think they both have a chance.

3. No matter what this has been a great Wimbledon for French men: With Gasquet and Simon reaching the quarters, this is the first time the French have placed two in the last eight at Wimbledon since 1991. If you’re scoring at home, that’s 24 years.

4. Half of the eight quarterfinalists have never reached the Wimbledon semis: If Wawrinka wins, he will tie Tommy Haas for the second-most appearances at Wimbledon before breaking through to the last four. If Simon wins today he will be third on the list (tied with Rainer Schuettler) with 10 appearances. If Cilic were to break through, this is his 9th. Pospisil is making his 4th appearance at Wimbledon.

5. Federer is bidding for his 37th major semifinal in his 65th appearance at a Slam: That’s another nice stat for the maestro. If he can get past Simon, he would reach his 10th Wimbledon semifinal, which would be one shy of Jimmy Connors record of eleven. He’s 77-9 at the AELTC, which leaves him 7 wins behind Jimmy Connors (84-18) for the all-time win lead. The accolades just keep piling up for Federer every time--and everywhere--he plays.

6. Djokovic Milestone: Djokovic is also bidding to record his 650th Tour-level match-win. Just 2 active players have won more matches than Djokovic – Roger Federer (1034) and Rafael Nadal (740). .

7. Vasek Pospisil has logged a lot of court time at Wimbledon: Pospisil has won 3 five-set matches this year at Wimbledon. Just four players in Open Era history have won four five-set matches at a single Grand Slam event – Steve Denton at the 1981 Australian Open, Todd Martin at 1994 Wimbledon, Nicolas Lapentti at the 1999 Australian Open and Albert Costa at 2003 Roland Garros. The Canadian also played a five-setter in his doubles quarterfinal, pairing with Jack Sock to lose to Murray and Peers.

His biggest problem is the fact that he'll be facing Andy Murray on Wednesday. What are the chances that he'll even win two sets, let alone a fifth?

8. Channel Double for Stanimal?: Stan Wawrinka is bidding to become just the 5th man in the Open Era to win Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year. Rod Laver (1969), Bjorn Borg (1978-80), Rafael Nadal (2008, 2010) and Federer (2009) are the only men to achieve the feat in the Open Era. Wawrinka is also bidding to become the second Swiss man to reach the Wimbledon semis.

9. Milestone for Murray: Andy Murray is bidding for his 150th Grand Slam win on Wednesday. He’s currently on a nine-match winning streak and he has not lost on grass this season. Murray is still not in the Top 10 all-time. Federer leads, with 289, while Djokovic has now passed Nadal for 7th place with 197. Nadal rests in 8th with 196. .

10. Uphill battle for Gasquet: The Frenchman has lost 15 of his last 16 matches against the Top 10, with his only win coming against Tomas Berdych in last year’s Davis Cup semis.