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Alcaraz king of “money time”
His dreams of a Roland-Garros – Wimbledon double are still alive. But Carlos Alcaraz found someone to talk to on Friday in the person of Frances Tiafoe, seeded number 29 in the tournament. Like two years ago at the US Open, the American pushed him to his limits. And like in Flushing, the Murcian had the last word in five sets (5-7, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6, 6-2) and 3h50 of play in the 3rd round on the Centre Court. The defending champion is therefore still alive and will face either Ugo Humbert or Brandon Nakashima.
When “Carlitos” enters a fifth set in a Grand Slam, his confidence must be at its zenith. He proved it once more on Friday by winning his 12th match out of 13 played in this configuration – Matteo Berrettini remaining his only executioner to date in the exercise at the end of the super tie-break at the 2022 Australian Open. Very badly handled by a Tiafoe as hard-hitting as he was inspired, the protégé of Juan Carlos Ferrero, very nervous and inconsistent until then, saved his skin in the tie-break of the fourth set.
Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon in 2024.
On the brink of the abyss, he raised his level spectacularly to win 7 points to 2 and roll out in the last act. By anticipating a long slammed volley from Tiafoe to make the mini-break at the start, Alcaraz completely took back control of the match, as if he had found the spark. Until then stuck on the recovery and put in difficulty by the incessant changes of pace of his rival, he was in great difficulty. He also paid for prohibitive lapses in concentration like in the first set when, following leading 4-2, 30/0, he completely lost the thread and gave up 5 of the following 6 games.
Tiafoe, for his part, read Alcaraz’s serve perfectly, hence the too low percentage on grass of points won behind his first serve by the Spaniard (70%). Also dominated in the short game at the net and in the dropshot-lob sequences, the world number 3 had the merit of hanging on, before passing the overmultiplied. With a sublime dropshot, his 52nd winning shot, he sealed the deal. Like Sinner once morest Berrettini, he victoriously passed his first test. He should only be more dangerous therefollowing.
Sinner wasted no time
The world number 1 succeeded him a few hours later. But he had a much quieter evening. After having perfectly resisted Berrettini in the 2nd round, Jannik Sinner played his tennis once morest Miomir Kecmanovic, 52nd in the world, whom he crushed in three sets (6-1, 6-4, 6-2) in just over an hour and a half (1h36 precisely). In the round of 16, he will face Denis Shapovalov or Ben Shelton.
Sinner simply didn’t give his Serbian opponent a chance to breathe, winning the first five games. After 21 minutes of play, he was already leading by a set. Of course, Kecmanovic kept up his pace better in the exchange in the second act. But from 6-1, 3-4 to 6-1, 6-4, 2-0, the Italian chained five games to wrap up the match. With 35 winners and 15 unforced errors, he played at a high level and only conceded one break point, which he saved in the last game. A job well done.
