Wimbledon 2015: heat is on as Murray faces Federer

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Another sweltering day is expected at Wimbledon as Andy Murray takes on Roger Federer in the men's semi-finals, but temperatures will not reach the uncomfortable heights of last week.

Murray and Federer may be slightly disadvantaged by playing second as they are likely to be doing battle during the hottest part of the day. Forecasters expect the temperature to be around the 22C mark for the first semi-final, between number one seed Novak Djokovic and Richard Gasquet of France.

Provided those two do not produce a marathon, Murray and Federer are likely to be on court some time between 4pm and 6pm, when the temperature is expected to be at its highest – around 24C. The good news for the players is that cloud cover will bring cooler conditions in the evening.

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Djokovic will be clear favourite in the first semi-final but the clash between Murray and Federer is too close to call. The Swiss won the last time they met at the Championships, winning the 2012 final. Murray, however, gained revenge when he beat Federer on the same court in the Olympic final later that year.

Federer has a record of four wins and only one defeat against Murray at Grand Slams, but he is now 33 and is bidding to become the oldest champion of the Open Era at Wimbledon, and the first to win eight titles, notes the BBC. His form in ominous, though. He has only dropped one set so far at Wimbledon and has only lost one service game all tournament.

Andy Murray, for his part, will be playing in his 17th Grand Slam final, the same number as Bjorn Borg and only bettered by ten players in the Open era.

Wimbledon 2015: conditions cool for Murray quarter-final

8 July

Andy Murray's quest for a second Wimbledon crown will continue under grey skies at SW19 as he faces Canadian Vasek Pospisil in the quarter-finals.

The Scottish number three seed is first up on Centre Court, and there is a slight risk of showers in the early afternoon before the weather clears.

If successful Murray will face the winner of the Court One clash between Wimbledon legend Roger Federer and Frenchman Gilles Simon in Friday's semi-finals.

After Murray's match on Centre Court reigning Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic faces US Open winner Marin Cilic and after that comes the final clash of the last eight between Stanislas Wawrinka and Richard Gasquet.

Temperatures on day ten of the tournament will be a lot cooler than those on Wednesday last week. A high of just 21C is expected today, compared to temperatures of 36C last week.

Wimbledon 2015: rain showers could interrupt quarter-finals

8 July

It's ladies quarter-final day at Wimbledon with the weather at SW19 expected to remain largely dry after a damp start to the day, although there could be showers in the early afternoon.

The main matches are in the ladies' competition, but there could be significant developments in the men's draw as number one seed Novak Djokovic plays out the fifth set of his fourth-round match against Kevin Anderson on Court One.

Maria Sharapova opens proceedings on Centre Court against the extravagantly monikered American, Coco Vandeweghe, before top seed Serena Williams, now only three matches away from holding all four Grand Slam titles for the second time in her career, faces Victoria Azarenka.

The other four quarter-finalists must be considered outsiders, with 13th seed Agnieszka Radwanska the highest-ranked woman in the bottom half of the draw. She faces 21st seed Madison Keys on Court One, and in the final match up 20th seed Garbine Muguruza plays Timea Bacsinszky, seeded 15.

There is a risk of a rain shower in the early afternoon, but forecasters suggest that the rest of the week will be dry.