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Australian grand slam doubles experts Storm Hunter and Matt Ebden have made it into Wimbledon semi-finals.
Storm Hunter and Matt Ebden have kept Australian hopes of doubles success soaring at Wimbledon after reaching the semi-finals of their events.
The Rockhampton-born left-hander Hunter continued her fine Wimbledon by making it to the last-four of the women's event with her Belgian partner Elise Mertens on Wednesday.
And Ebden, the reigning men's doubles champion, is into this year's semi-finals of the same event, this time with a different partner, India's Rohan Bopanna, after his success with fellow Australian Max Purcell last year.
Queenslander Hunter, who'd also battled through qualifying at a second-straight grand slam to reach the main draw in the singles, and Mertens eased to a 6-2 6-1 victory over Britain's Naiktha Bains and Maia Lumsden in a one-sided quarter-final.
The No.3 seeds, who've lost just seven games in three matches so far, have enjoyed a charmed run to the semi-finals, where they will meet the 16th seeds, American Caroline Dolehide and China's Shuai Zhang.
In their second match, Hunter and Mertens were given a walkover because of injury to one of their opponents as they led Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu and Ukraine's Anhelina Kalinina by a set.
They got another walkover in the third round when Marketa Vondrousova, the singles semi-finalist, decided to pull out from the doubles to save herself for her last-four meeting with Elina Svitolina.
On Wednesday, Hunter helped spoil one of 2023's few British success stories at the All England Club, as she and Mertens defeated Bains and Lumsden, who were the first home pairing to reach the women's doubles quarter-finals for 40 years.
It represented more success for Hunter and Mertens, who've worked well together since joining forces, their most recent triumph coming at the Italian Open in Rome in May.
They're now warm favourites to win the Wimbledon crown after the withdrawal of reigning champions Barbora Krjecikova, through injury, and Katerina Siniakova.
Veteran sixth seeds, 35-year-old Ebden and 43-year-old Bopanna, defeated the Dutch pair Tallon Griekspoor and Bart Stevens 6-7 (3-7) 7-5 6-2 in the men's quarter-finals.
Perth's Ebden, who won the mixed doubles crown at the Australian Open with Jarmila Gajdosova, will next face top seeds, Dutchman Wesley Koolhof and Briton Neal Skupski, on Thursday for a place in the final.
Both Australia's remaining players in the girls' singles, Emerson Jones and Taylah Preston, bowed out on Wednesday, but Heath Davidson has made it into the semi-finals of the quad wheelchair singles, beating Briton Gregory Slade 6-2 6-4.
