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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Ryan Merrifield

Kate Middleton misses Wimbledon semi-final - and there's a very sweet reason why

Kate Middleton is missing the second Wimbledon semi-final today - and there's a very sweet reason why.

British men's Number 1 Cameron Norrie is taking on defending champion Novak Djokovic on Centre Court, but the Duchess of Cambridge is not in the Royal Box.

The 40-year-old mum is a major tennis fan and was spotted at the All England Club with Prince William on Wednesday for the quarter finals.

But it's Prince George, eight, and seven-year-old Princess Charlotte's final day at school before they head for summer break - and so the duchess has foregone the tennis action.

Both royal kids have attended St Thomas’s Battersea Junior School since they were four, but with the Cambridges set to move from London to Windsor, they may not return in September.

Reports have long circulated that they are ready to quit Kensington Palace in favour of a move to Berkshire, which would also likely mean new schools for George, Charlotte and Louis, four.

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It's Prince George and Princess Charlotte's final day of school today (Getty Images)

Making the move from London to Windsor would be a huge step for William and Kate and their family.

A royal insider told the Daily Mail that the relocation is due to William wanting to be closer to the Queen as she continues to delegate additional royal duties to him.

William is said to speak to his grandmother, who pretty much spends all of her time at Windsor Castle now, on the phone several times a week.

Kate is a major tennis fan and a patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club (Tim Merry)

And it's not the first time Kate - who is a patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club - has missed a major clash featuring a British player.

In 2013 when Andy Murray made it to the Wimbledon final Kate it seems was eager to be in the Royal Box to cheer him on.

But she was heavily pregnant with George at the time, so was advised to watch the match from home.

She told sports host Sue Barker on the BBC documentary Our Wimbledon: "I was very heavily pregnant with George so I wasn't able to turn up."

Sue replied: "But you had a great excuse!"

William and Kate have confirmed they will be attending Wimbledon over the weekend to watch the singles finals.

Kate will watch the ladies' final between Elena Rybakina and Ons Jabeur on Saturday.

William will then join her to watch the men's final on Sunday, which will see Nick Kyrgios go up against or Djokovic, who beat Norrie this afternoon.

The pair later hailed Norrie as "brilliant" after his dramatic five-set quarter-finals match.

Kate and William put on a cute display at Wimbledon (PA)

It comes after William appeared to be caught on camera swearing as he watched Norrie on Tuesday.

The Duke was spotted by eagle-eyed viewers during the tense encounter saying: "No, no, no, f***" in the Court One crowd.

As Norrie was seen wheeling away in frustration after slipping up in his own service game, the BBC coverage cut to an equally annoyed Duke.

He shook his head from side to side before seemingly uttering the expletive as he straightened his tie.

After the match, William and Kate tweeted a picture of the South Africa-born star pumping his fist on the court, with the caption: "What a match! Just brilliant @cam -norrie".

They later added: "What a day of tennis! Fantastic to be back @Wimbledon today and wonderful to see @Cam -Norrie flying the flag in the singles!"

William and Kate, who wore a blue dress with white polka dots and pearl earrings, stood up in their seats to applaud Norrie when he secured his place in the semi-final.

The Duke's cousin Princess Beatrice was spotted enjoying a day out at Wimbledon today.

The Queen's grandchild, who was wearing a pink and white floral dress, was joined by her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi as the pair watched the matches on Centre Court.

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