It wasn’t easy, but top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz is moving on at Wimbledon with a 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3, 7-5 win over Nicolas Jarry.
The world No. 1 was frequently on the ropes against Jarry, but always managed to find another gear as he wrapped up the victory on Centre Court to set up a tantalizing encounter with Matteo Berrettini, a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) winner over Alexander Zverev.
A 2021 Wimbledon finalist, Berrettini has been hindered of late by an abdominal injury. He withdrew from the Monte-Carlo Masters, Madrid Open and French Open due to the recurring injury before returning at the Stuttgart Open, where he suffered a first-round loss. That was followed by him pulling out of the Queen’s Club Championships. Despite the limited ramp-up to Wimbledon, Berrettini has won his past two matches in straight sets ahead of a showdown with the top-ranked Alcaraz.
What had looked like a routine outing for Alcaraz on Saturday after he claimed the first set after a solitary break quickly turned into something more troublesome as Jarry raced to a 4-1 lead in the second. Alcaraz rallied before dropping the second set in a tiebreaker, took care of business in the third and battled back again to close out the match in four sets — wrapping up the match with two massive serves that were just too hot for Jarry to handle.
“I stayed focused, all the time,” Alcaraz said on court after the win. “I knew I was going to have my chances. It was really close, he has great shots, very solid.”
Alcaraz will now look to advance past the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time in his career.
Another player looking for a grass-court breakthrough is Russia’s Daniil Medvedev.
A year after being banned from playing at Wimbledon following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Medvedev has been making up for lost time as he downed Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 to reach the fourth round on Saturday.
“I really want to do well here. This is my worst Grand Slam in terms of results; even in Roland Garros I have managed to get into the quarters,” the No. 3 seed told the Court No. 1 crowd.
“I have big motivation to change it so I hope I can show my best tennis and enjoy,” added the 2021 US Open champion who also made it into the last 16 in his most recent appearance here two years ago.
This season Medvedev has been on fire on the ATP Tour, winning five titles, but the 27-year-old maverick has struggled to carry that form into the majors, falling early at both the Australian and French Opens.
Fifth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas is also headed to the fourth round. A day after outlasting Andy Murray in a five-set affair that lasted two days, Tsitsipas needed just three sets to top Laslo Djere 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-4.
With the win, Tsitsipas now finally gets a day off.
The 24-year-old has played five straight days, a shift that began with a first-round, five-setter against former US Open champion Dominic Thiem — a match that took two days to complete. Then came the Murray match before Saturday’s victory. All totaled, Tsitsipas has spent eight hours and 46 minutes on court.
He’ll next face unseeded American Christopher Eubanks, who beat Australia’s Christopher O’Connell 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2). The 27-year-old from Atlanta, who knocked off Britain’s Cameron Norrie in the second round, is headed to the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.
Tommy Paul didn’t fare as well Saturday, as the American lost to Jiri Lehecka in five sets. Paul, seeded 16th at Wimbledon, reached the Australian Open semifinals earlier this year.
Sixth-seeded Holger Rune of Denmark overcame Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-3, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10-8) in a grueling battle of attrition Saturday to advance to the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time in his career.
With absolutely nothing to separate the pair after nearly four hours out on Court No. 3, the match came down to a final-set tiebreak, where it was the more experienced Davidovich Fokina who cracked under pressure.
With the tiebreak level at 8-8, Davidovich Fokina attempted an underhand serve that saw Rune’s eyes light up before he smashed a vicious winner past Davidovich Fokina to set up match point.
Rune then prevailed in the roller-coaster encounter when Davidovich Fokina found the net on the final point as an exhausted but ecstatic Rune lay flat on his back on the grass, soaking in the applause.
Information from Reuters was used in this report.