Emma Raducanu and Sonay Kartal played each other frequently as juniors
Alan Jewell
BBC Sport at Wimbledon
Former junior rivals Emma Raducanu and Sonay Kartal will aim to reach the Wimbledon last 16 on Friday when they play their third-round matches.
Raducanu is second on Centre Court against Greek ninth seed Maria Sakkari.
Fellow Briton Kartal, the world number 298, faces second seed Coco Gauff in the final match on Court One.
Before Raducanu’s tie, there is an attractive match-up between defending men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz and 29th seed Frances Tiafoe from 13:30 BST.
World number one Jannik Sinner closes the programme on Centre against Miomir Kecmanovic.
Wildcard Raducanu, 21, comes into the third round full of confidence after she thoroughly outplayed Elise Mertens on Wednesday, losing just three games in her success.
The test against Sakkari is a rematch of their 2021 US Open semi-final which the Briton won 6-1 6-4 on her way to the title.
Now ranked 135th as she continues her comeback from multiple surgeries last year, Raducanu reached the Nottingham semi-finals and Eastbourne quarter-finals in the build-up to Wimbledon.
“I have had quite a few matches on grass so I am feeling really good,” she told BBC Sport.
“It’s a match where I can go out and have a swing.
“I have no pressure or expectation to beat someone in the top 10 right now, but of course I believe in myself and I’m confident with the way I am playing.”
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While Raducanu rocketed to stardom with her stunning win in New York as a qualifier, 22-year-old Kartal has taken longer to make a name for herself.
The pair regularly played each other at junior level and a clip of a lengthy rally, external from that period has previously gone viral.
Kartal’s development was checked by injuries before “a scary few months at the start of the year” with health issues. She did not expect to be well enough to play at Wimbledon this year and says coming through qualifying was “the best thing for me”.
Kartal told BBC Sport she had “spent my whole life kind of under the radar a little bit”.
On Friday, she steps into the Court One spotlight to play American Gauff, the 2023 US Open champion.
“I think it’s what dreams are made of,” said Kartal. “I came here as a little kid, when I was six or seven, watching matches. I’ve got pictures in my house of me and my family on Centre Court, watching Roger Federer and things like that.
“I’ll play my game and play my strengths and we’ll see what the outcome is on Friday.”
