Every player will tell you that there is no other tournament setting quite like the All England Club and that’s especially true for the Norwich-born Alfie Hewett.

“There's so much that makes it so meaningful. I think for me personally to have family and friends, and obviously fans as well, to get behind myself and the sport is like no other,” said the 26-year-old Brit of competing at his home Grand Slam.

“We don't really experience this sort of atmosphere - or I don't anyway – at any other tournaments in the year, so it's nice to be looking up in the stands and see some familiar faces.”

Like most of his colleagues, Hewett equally appreciates the uniqueness of competing at Wimbledon. “I think we all talk about the stories, the green, the feeling around here. I love it,” he added. “It is different to the other Slams … a unique little atmosphere.”

Hewett earned more time to compete on SW19’s pristine grass as he progressed to the semi-finals of the Wheelchair gentlemen’s singles tournament. Following a straight-sets win over countryman Ben Bartram in the first round, the No.2 seed survived a spirited challenge from Frenchman Stephane Houdet in the quarter-finals.

“To get through to another semi-final is a really good feeling,” said Hewett, who required one hour and 45 minutes to record a 6-1, 6-4 victory over the 53-year-old Houdet.

“Obviously (there were) certain frustrations in the match. But at the end of the day, I've got another opportunity tomorrow to go one step further.”

Hewett required both his impressive groundstrokes and a measure of persistence to earn his opportunity. After storming through the first set, the Brit was made to work harder as the match reached a critical stage on No.3 Court.

With Houdet serving, the ninth game extended more than nine excruciating minutes; amid a flurry of 10 deuces and eight break points saved, the Frenchman delivered a pair of underarm serves. “Houdet's a tricky operator,” Hewett laughed. “He's no stranger to the game, so he has tricks up his sleeve as you saw.”

But on his ninth break point, the Brit converted with a well-placed backhand and consolidated to secure victory. Next for the No.2 seed is a semi-final showdown with Gustavo Fernandez, the No.3 seed from Argentina, who moved into the last four with a 7-5, 6-2 win over the Netherlands’ Tom Egberink.

There’s much to motivate Hewett for that challenge. Fernandez defeated Hewett’s countryman Gordon Reid – his partner in 19 Grand Slam doubles victories, including five at Wimbledon – in the 2024 first round and was a recent winner over Hewett in the recent Roland-Garros semi-finals.

“We've played a lot of semi-finals against each other in Grand Slams over the last three or four years,” said the world No.2. “Yes, he won the last one in Roland-Garros, but I beat him in Eastbourne, so I can expect a lot of intensity to the court. A lot of aggression. He's not really after long rallies and he's a big character … I expect a battle out there.”

Hewett will bring tremendous passion to that battle. The local favourite contested the last two gentlemen’s Wheelchair singles finals at Wimbledon, finishing runner-up to Shingo Kunieda and Tokito Oda respectively. A home Grand Slam is the only major missing from Hewett’s record, which includes four US Open titles, three at Roland-Garros and one singles trophy lifted in Australia.

Meanwhile, world No.1 Oda continued the successful defence of his 2023 Wimbledon singles title. At age 18, the Japanese is already a winner of three Grand Slam trophies, including back-to-back Roland-Garros titles and victory over Hewett to triumph at the All England Club last year.

After opening his title defence with a win over countryman Takashi Sanada, Oda defeated Belgium’s Joachim Gerard 6-3 6-3 in a one-hour 23-minute quarter-final. He’ll face Martin De Le Puente in the semi-finals, after the No.4 seed allowed Spanish countryman Daniel Caverzaschi just one game in a 57-minute win.

Diede de Groot is also adding to her astonishing Grand Slam feats. The 26-year-old Dutchwoman is targeting a 15th consecutive major singles title, with her five Wimbledon singles victories including a hat-trick of trophies in the last three years.

De Groot defeated American Dana Mathewson 6-0 7-5 to set a semi-final with Ziying Wang. The Chinese player claimed a 7-5 2-6 6-3 win over No.3 seed Jiske Griffioen to advance.

Japanese No.2 seed Yui Kamiji progressed to the other ladies' semi-final with a 6-7(4), 6-2, 6-1 win over South Africa’s Kgothatso Montjane. She’ll face No.4 seed Aniek Van Koot, a 2-6, 7-6(4) 6-4 winner over Xiaohui Li.