Donna Vekic nearly quit tennis but now she’s in Wimbledon semifinals and will face Jasmine Paolini

AP Sports Writer

LONDON (AP) — Donna Vekic had thought a couple of times about quitting tennis, like when she struggled to get back to her best after knee surgery in 2021. Now she’s happy she stuck with it. The 28-year-old Croatian reached her first Grand Slam semifinal in her 43rd appearance at a major tournament by beating qualifier Lulu Sun 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 at Wimbledon on Tuesday. Vekic says “those couple of years were very tough.” She will face No. 7 Jasmine Paolini for a spot in the final. The 28-year-old Italian beat No. 19 Emma Navarro 6-2, 6-1.