Sabalenka and Alcaraz face seeds for first time at this year's Wimbledon

LONDON :World number one Aryna Sabalenka continues her quest for a first Wimbledon title when she takes on Elise Mertens, while two-times defending champion Carlos Alcaraz faces Andrey Rublev when the fourth round begins on Sunday.

TOP WOMEN'S MATCH: ARYNA SABALENKA V ELISE MERTENS

After battling past Briton Emma Raducanu, Sabalenka comes up against a seeded player, who are thin on the ground following a brutal cull over the opening few days, when she meets Belgian 24th seed Mertens.

After coming through a real battle against Raducanu, Sabalenka was not getting carried away about her chances even though she has yet to drop a set.

"As my experience shows, it doesn't matter," Sabalenka said.

"This win doesn't mean that I'm going to win the tournament. It doesn't mean anything. It's just a great match.

"That's why I love sport. It's all about challenging yourself. When you go through tough challenges and you get the win, it's the best feeling."

Mertens will need to snap a nine-match losing run against Sabalenka in order to reach the quarter-finals for the first time.

TOP MEN'S MATCH: ANDREY RUBLEV V CARLOS ALCARAZ

Alcaraz also meets a seeded player for the first time in what looks set to be a tough test against Rublev who has grown in confidence as his run continues, having begun with low expectations.

"Before I start to play Wimbledon, I was making fun to my team, like I don't know what I'm going to do, if we're going to lose first round then we go home or not," Rublev said.

"I'm playing good. I'm hitting the ball well. I start to feel that the level is there, and it's just a matter of time in terms of results."

Alcaraz holds a 2-1 head-to-head advantage over the Russian 14th seed, but this will be their first meeting on grass.

"It's