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DAY 5 MEN'S WRAP: Fritz fires, Alcaraz battles, Monfils exits

football04 July 2025 18:00| © AFP
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For a brief moment it looked like Taylor Fritz's Independence Day celebrations could be ruined but some final-set fireworks propelled the American into the last 16 at Wimbledon with a 6-4 6-3 6-7(5) 6-1 win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina on Friday.

Order of Play | Win with SPAR

It had all looked to be going so well for the world No 5, who had been taken to five sets in his last two encounters but raced into a two-set lead against Spain's Davidovich Fokina on a sunny Centre Court.

He was a break up in the third and serving for the match when his normally reliable delivery spluttered as the 27th-ranked Spaniard finally converted a break point and then forced a tiebreak which he won in a tense tussle.

With his tail up, it felt like momentum had switched, but Fritz, whose languid manner never gives up a hint of frustration, swiftly rediscovered his form and turned the tide, breaking three times in the final set to wrap up victory.

Bidding to become the first American men's Grand Slam winner since Andy Roddick in 2003, Fritz has shown that if stamina alone determined the Wimbledon champion, he would be hard to beat.

His Wimbledon campaign began on the back of winning his fourth Eastbourne title on Saturday.

Then his first match at the All England Club on Monday was carried over into Tuesday, and his second-round tie on Wednesday was heading the same way before he finished off Gabriel Diallo to earn a well-deserved rest day.

While there was almost certainly a part of him that was grateful for not being dragged the distance for a third match in a row, the 27-year-old American said he was feeling great ahead of a fourth-round meeting with Australia's Jordan Thompson.

"This is going to sound crazy but my body is actually feeling better after each match," he said. "I feel like somehow it felt the worst after my first round but now it's getting better."

The first three games on Friday were gritty and attritional and lasted 17 minutes, suggesting Fritz was already digging trenches for another lengthy battle.

But then the whole feel of the match changed as Davidovich Fokina struggled to create any sort of pressure on Fritz's serve and the American rode an early break to take the first set and immediately got his nose in front in the second.

After two marathon encounters it looked like Fritz was going to sprint to the finish line, but out of nowhere the 26-year-old Spaniard finally found a way to upset the American's serve.

Trailing 5-4, he conjured two break points and while the first got away - the seventh he had spurned in the match - Davidovich Fokina pressured Fritz into dumping a backhand into the net to hand the 26th seed a lifeline.

He took the tiebreak when Fritz netted another backhand under pressure, roaring and fist-pumping to polite applause from a crowd who were perhaps inclined to see this match wrapped up quickly with Carlos Alcaraz and home favourite Emma Raducanu still to come on the Centre Court schedule.

If that was their wish it was granted as the comeback that had flickered into life was snuffed out almost immediately with Fritz racing through the fourth set and finishing it off when the Spaniard whipped a forehand long.

SPEEDY SHELTON REACHES THIRD ROUND IN ONE MINUTE

Talk about a man in a hurry -- 10th seed Ben Shelton required just one minute to finish off his interrupted match against Australian Rinky Hijikata and reach the  third round as he completed a 6-2 7-5 6-4 victory.

The American was left seething the previous evening when the contest on Court Two was suspended by umpire Nacho Forcadell because of fading light with Shelton serving for the match.

That did not sit well with the 22-year-old who earned the sympathy of the crowd who chanted "one more game".

After a night to sleep on it, Shelton made no mistake when play resumed, serving three aces, two clocked at 140mph, and an unreturned second serve to take his place in the last 32.

The official reason for the previous night's stoppage was that automated Hawk-Eye line calling, which has replaced line judges this year for the first time, was unable to operate in low light conditions.

"The umpire said it was like a five-minute warning until the Hawk-Eye was going down. That was, like, including the changeover, so there wouldn't be enough time to complete the game," Shelton told reporters after his win.

"I was telling him, I only need 60 seconds. That's kind of what my goal was when I went out there today."

Shelton's biggest gripe was that the match should actually have been curtailed earlier on Thursday as the court was becoming slippery, rather than at 5-4.

"To stop when you're serving for the match, isn't ideal," he told reporters. "I thought we could have stopped earlier. My opponent was complaining since the end of the second set.

"It seemed like there were better times if they knew they were going to stop it, to stop it before it got to that point."

Shelton said he had walked back on court prepared to play another two hours if necessary. Thankfully for him, he was required to strike the ball only five times.

"I'm just happy with the way I handled it coming out today and taking care of my business. I don't think that physically there's any big deal for me playing one game," he said.

"But it's never ideal mentally having to wake up another day and be on and know that it's a match day. Obviously I went out there prepared to play two and a half sets.

"You can't just go out there be like, 'Yeah, I'm going to hold (serve)'. What happens if you don't?"

The big-serving Shelton has enjoyed a consistent run in the Grand Slams, now having reached at least the third round in his last eight appearances, including a semi-final run in Australia at the beginning of the year, his second major semi.

Shelton will play lucky loser Marton Fucsovics in the next round after the Hungarian also completed a resumed match against French veteran Gael Monfils.

Victory in that would see the American match his best result at Wimbledon, having reached the last 16 this time last year.

MONFILS FINDS PHILOSOPHY AFTER FIVE-SET EXIT

Tennis showman Gael Monfils bowed in five sets on — but the Frenchman was more sage than sour as he reflected on a career that has danced between the sublime and the spectacular.

The 38-year-old fell 6-4 1-6 4-6 7-6(5) 6-4 to Hungary's Marton Fucsovics in a match carried over from last night, yet emerged from defeat with the perspective that comes from two decades in professional tennis and a life now enriched beyond the baseline.

"I've been fortunate enough to be a tennis player in such a big sport," former top-10 player Monfils said after his exit, before recalling his first intoxicating moment on a tennis court more than 20 years ago.

"A moment that stands out for me is 2004, my first Bercy (Paris Masters)," he said of playing before a raucous French crowd. "Unreal energy ... that was a special moment."

While Monfils admitted he struggled with conditions when play resumed at Wimbledon on Friday after an overnight suspension, he refused to indulge in any what-ifs.

"To tell you that I would have won the match is too much. I don't really know. I wish I could win this match today, but that's sport. I'm going to rest a couple of days and go back on court and try to be ready for the US tour."

More revealing, though, was his evolved view of the sport's place in his world. Married to fellow player Elina Svitolina and now a father, Monfils offered a refreshing take on priorities.

"Tennis is part of my life, but tennis is not my life," he said. "My life outside of tennis is my real life."

The Frenchman smiled when he was asked what it meant to be on the tennis tour together with Ukrainian Svitolina.

"It's a tough question in a way, because you see my wife as a tennis player; I see my wife as a wife. It's completely different. But of course, it's great that we can share the same passion. I'm lucky enough to raise a child, and hopefully we'll get more someday ... just grateful every day."

ERRATIC ALCARAZ BATTLES INTO FOURTH ROUND

Carlos Alcaraz survived another erratic performance, battling to a 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff to stay on track for a third straight Wimbledon crown.

Alcaraz made 28 unforced errors in an inconsistent display on Centre Court but conjured enough moments of magic to eventually subdue the world number 125 and book his place in the last 16.

The world No 2 had been pushed to the brink in a five-set win over 38-year-old Italian Fabio Fognini in the first round and looked below his best again in a second-round victory over British amateur Oliver Tarvet.

After grinding out his latest underwhelming win, the Spaniard has plenty of room for improvement.

In contrast to Alcaraz's laboured efforts, world No 1 Jannik Sinner – his main rival at the All England Club – has dropped just 12 games in his first two matches.

It is hardly time for Alcaraz to panic, however.

He has won his past 21 matches since losing to Holger Rune in the Barcelona final in April, a streak that has brought him titles at the Rome Masters, the French Open and Queen's Club.

The 22-year-old, who fought back from two sets down to beat Sinner on clay in an epic final at Roland Garros last month, has won 32 of his 35 Tour-level matches on grass.

The five-time Grand Slam winner's last defeat at Wimbledon came against Sinner in the fourth round in 2022.

Having vanquished Novak Djokovic in the past two Wimbledon finals, Alcaraz is looking to join an elite group of Wimbledon icons.

He hopes to become the fifth man in the Open Era to win at least three consecutive Wimbledon titles after Bjorn Borg, Roger Federer, Pete Sampras and seven-time champion Djokovic.

Struff had shocked 25th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second round and the 35-year-old proved a tricky opponent for Alcaraz as well.

Having fretted about his misfiring serve in the first two matches of his title defence, it was a worrying moment for Alcaraz when he started the match with a double-fault.

The Spaniard managed to win that game and quickly broke Struff's serve twice to wrap up the opening set in just 27 minutes.

Alcaraz looked in complete control when he broke again early in the second set.

Yet his serve woes suddenly returned as he was broken in the next game and again in the eighth, allowing Struff to level the match.

Alcaraz, then still a precocious teenager, had to come from two sets to one down to beat Struff in the Wimbledon first round in 2022.

He was not in quite such a perilous position this time, but the Spaniard was still relieved to take the third set after landing the crucial break in the second game.

Alcaraz was pushed hard in the fourth set before at last delivering the knockout blow.

FROM VERTIGO TO VICTORY, CHILE'S JARRY INTO LAST 16

Nicolas Jarry has been to hell and back in the last year but on Friday on a sun-kissed court in south-west London the towering Chilean put the dark days behind him to reach the fourth round of Wimbledon for the first time in his career.

Those with tickets for what was billed as a South American showdown on Court Two had expected to see Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca underline why he is tipped as the next big thing.

The 18-year-old showed flashes of the shot-making that will surely make him a contender for Grand Slam titles but it was the 29-year-old Jarry who produced a display of skill and guts to win a slow-burner 6-3 6-4 3-6 7-6(4).

Fonseca could be excused for thinking Jarry was serving down from an Andean peak in the opening two sets as he seemed powerless to make any impact on a weapon that produced 25 aces.

But as the seats that were empty early on began to fill with chanting fans the atmosphere suddenly became more Copacabana than leafy west London, and Rio-born Fonseca came to the party.

Fonseca took the third set and as the crowd greeted his winners with a chorus of 'Joooaooww...Fon-Seca' it seemed the match was swinging his way.

Jarry had to save three break points at 3-3 in the fourth set and was staring down the barrel two games later at 0-40 as Fonseca, who twice needed treatment during the contest, whipped up the crowd with some stunning passes.

Undaunted, Jarry served his way out of a hole and then reeled off five points in a row from a 2-4 deficit in the tiebreak to claim victory and match his grandfather Jaime Fillol who reached the last 16 at Wimbledon in 1974.

Jarry was overcome with emotion, hugged his wife and then brought his young son on court before opening his heart about what he has had to overcome in the past 12 months.

Those not in the know would have been surprised to hear the former top-20 player describe how a year ago he was diagnosed with vestibular neuritis – a condition which causes inflammation of the nerve that connects the inner ear to the brain and causes vertigo, dizziness and imbalance.

"I had the issue which affected my perception, my balance and I've been trying to come back and recover," an emotional Jarry said. "It's been physically, emotionally and psychologically very tough."

Such was the impact of the condition that after reaching the Rome final last year, his form fell off a cliff, the wins dried up, and his ranking plummeted outside the top 100.

He had to qualify for Wimbledon this year, winning three matches, but now he is looking forward to the prospect of a clash with Britain's Cameron Norrie on Sunday.

Norrie, the 2022 Wimbledon semifinalist, beat Italy's Mattia Bellucci 7-6(5) 6-4 6-3 in a tightly contested match to progress to the fourth round.

RUBLEV BEATS MANNARINO

Russian 14th seed Andrey Rublev beat Adrian Mannarino 7-5 6-2 6-3 to reach the fourth round.

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