Barty, the world No. 1 and pre-tournament favorite, kicks off proceedings at 1:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET) when she faces Kerber, the No. 25 seed and 2018 Wimbledon champion on Centre Court.

The 2019 French Open winner, Barty swept aside compatriot Ajla Tomljanovic 6-1, 6-3 on Tuesday to become the first Australian player to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon since Jelena Dokic in 2000.

Kerber, a three-time Grand Slam winner, accounted for U.S. sensation Coco Gauff in the Round of 16, before cruising past Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic with a 6-2, 6-3 win in the quarterfinals.

The Australian Open and U.S. Open winner in 2016, Kerber hadn’t gone past the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament since her Wimbledon triumph three years ago. For Barty, meanwhile, Thursday’s semifinal will be the first appearance in the final four of a Grand Slam tournament since the 2020 Australian Open.

“This is my dream,” Barty told BBC Sports.

“The world, the way we’re living at the moment, I think it’s incredible that we’re able to play, compete, have people enjoy it with us. I’m certainly enjoying every single minute that I get out on those courts.”

Barty and Kerber have met four times, winning twice each, but Thursday’s will be their first meeting on grass, a surface on which Kerber has won her last 10 consecutive matches.

“Angie [Kerber] has an incredible record here,” Barty added. “It’s not scary or overwhelming, it’s just exciting. It’s exciting to have the challenge of playing someone.”

In the second semifinal, which is expected to start no earlier than 2:45 p.m. local time (10:45 a.m. ET) on Centre Court, world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus takes on No. 8 seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic.

Sabalenka reached the first Grand Slam semifinal of her career after defeating Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur 6-4, 6-3 in the quarterfinals. The Belarusian’s run at Wimbledon in 2021 is all the more remarkable considering she had never made it past the fourth round of any Grand Slam tournaments.

“I was struggling at Grand Slams with all emotions going through. After every Slam I was so disappointed with myself that I can’t handle this pressure,” she said.

“I actually thought that I will never make it to the second week.”

Pliskova is also a first-time semifinalist at Wimbledon, where she is yet to drop a set this year.

The former world No. 1 defeated Switzerland Viktorija Golubic 6-2, 6-2 on Tuesday and remains on course for a maiden Grand Slam title, five years on after reaching her first and so far only major final at the 2016 U.S. Open.

“It means a lot [to reach the semi-finals], of course. Especially after not really having many good weeks before Wimbledon, it feels like a dream,” she said.

Here’s all you need to know ahead of Thursday.

How to Watch Wimbledon on TV

Coverage of the women’s semifinals begins at 8 a.m. ET on ESPN on Thursday and runs until 1 p.m. ET.

How to Watch Wimbledon Online

Fans can watch the action online via ESPN3, ESPN+ as well as via the WatchESPN app. Both matches will also be available via streaming services such as fuboTV and Sling TV, which carry ESPN channels.

Wimbledon 2021 odds

Pre-tournament favorite Ashleigh Barty remains the woman to beat in the eyes of the bookmakers. The world No. 1 is a 6-4 favorite with both William Hill and FanDuel, just ahead of world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka who is 2-1 with William Hill and 12-5 with FanDuel. Angelique Kerber is 7-2 to win a second Wimbledon title and Karolina Pliskova is a 13-2 outsider.