Wimbledon: Britain’s Edmund into boys’ semi-finals

The 18-year-old from Beverley, East Yorkshire posted a 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory to set up a last-four match against Italian Gianluigi Quinzi.

Fifth seed Edmund began his Wimbledon campaign in the men’s event, losing in the first round to Jerzy Janowicz, the big-serving Polish 24th seed who takes on Murray today for a place in the final.

Edmund has never reached a junior singles final at a grand slam, going closest at the US Open in 2011 when he reached the semi-finals.

His cause was helped yesterday when Kozlov, just 15, appeared to suffer from cramp in their deciding set.

Italian sixth seed Gianluigi Quinzi awaits in the last four, with Edmund two wins away from becoming Britain’s first junior boys’ singles champion since Stanley Matthews jr in 1962. They have played three times before, Edmund winning twice. Edmund, who with Portuguese partner Frederico Ferreira Silva later reached the boys’ doubles quarter-finals, admitted his singles quarter-final had been a stiff test.

“It was a tough match. I felt I was playing quite edgy tennis and I didn’t feel comfortable in the first set,” Edmund said. “I knew I had to change something and I found a bit of form and that really built up my confidence.”

He said playing on the show court was an experience he would “never forget” and admitted there were similarities between his display and the way Murray tackled Verdasco.

“I was talking to one of his trainers,” Edmund said, “and we were saying how each tournament there’s always one match where there’s something difficult. That was hopefully Andy’s match and I had to go through a difficult match today.”