Lisicki secures final spot

Sabine Lisicki became the first German to reach Wimbledon's women's singles final since Steffi Graf in 1999 after she dug deep to pull off a remarkable marathon win over fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska.

Lisicki stunned Radwanska by powering her way to the first set of the second semi-final, but she then lost five service games in a row to put her chance of victory in danger.

The German lost the second set and went behind in the third, but she summoned the strength she used to defeat Serena Williams to see off Radwanska 6-4 2-6 9-7 and set up a final against France's Marion Bartoli.

"It's unbelievable. The last few games were so exciting," a smiling Lisicki, who beat Serena Williams earlier in the tournament, told the BBC.

"We were fighting, Agnieszka played so well throughout the match. It was a battle. I'm so happy to have won that.

"I fought with all my heart and believed I could still win no matter what the score was."

Lisicki was in a similar situation in her fourth-round match against Williams, winning in three after squandering a one-set lead.

"It was a little bit like that in the third set when I was down 3-0," Lisicki added.

"I thought, 'Okay, you did it against Serena so you can do it today as well'. It gave me so much confidence. I'm so, so happy I was able to finish it.

"Wimbledon is my favourite tournament, I love it so much and I love being in England. I cannot believe I'm in the final."