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DAY 3 MEN'S WRAP: Alcaraz ends Tarvet fairytale, Norrie stuns Tiafoe

football02 July 2025 19:35| © Reuters
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Carlos Alcaraz was in no mood to suffer probably the biggest upset in Wimbledon history as he ended world number 733 Ollie Tarvet's hopes of a fairytale victory to reach the third round with a clinical 6-1 6-4 6-4 win on Wednesday.

Order of Play | Win with SPAR

Fired up by a home crowd who could not get enough of Tarvet's tireless running and dogged resistance, the Briton was more than a capable sparring partner for Alcaraz, whose heavyweight hitting was in the end simply too much for the lowest-ranked player to begin the men’s singles draw.

Qualifier Tarvet's first-round opponent had described him as a wall, but twice defending champion Alcaraz is the sort of wrecking ball who pays little heed to such obstructions.

The five-times Grand Slam champion had to save eight break points in the first set, but lost only one game and broke twice himself to move ahead in the contest.

The 21-year-old Tarvet, a US college student in San Diego, finally broke the Spaniard's serve to go 2-0 up in the second set but that seemed to jolt Alcaraz awake and he won the next four points to break back immediately.

Another break in the ninth game was enough for Alcaraz to take the second set but the contest still had flickers of life left in it.

The world number two broke to go 3-2 up in the third set but Tarvet, who had no intention of lying down and accepting his fate, struck back in the next game.

Alcaraz was once again roused into action and once more won the following four points to claim the decisive break that allowed him to see out the contest.

A thundering service winner on match point brought the crowd to their feet, as much to acclaim Tarvet's efforts as 22-year-old Alcaraz's comfortable win.

Alcaraz patted the Briton on the back as he left the court before graciously saluting his opponent's performance.

"I just loved his game to be honest," the Spaniard said on court. "I knew at the beginning I had to play my best tennis."

NORRIE STUNS TIAFOE

Britain's Cameron Norrie returned to his favourite patch of Wimbledon turf to stun American 12th seed Frances Tiafoe and reach the third round with a 4-6 6-4 6-3 7-5 win.

Court One might lack the aura of the All England Club's historic Centre Court, but Norrie loves it, having won three matches there during his semifinal run in 2022.

The chemistry was clear for all to see again on a mercifully fresh Wimbledon day as the world number 61 recovered from losing a tight first set to bamboozle a flat-looking Tiafoe.

"I was really happy with the schedule when I saw I was on Court One as it's my favourite court," Norrie, who has reached the third round for the fourth time, said.

"We both played high level but I stayed so calm and I really enjoyed the battle. The atmosphere was amazing."

Norrie, 29, was one of seven home players who won their first-round singles matches on Monday -- a British record of wins for a single day at Wimbledon in the professional era.

All seven were back on Wednesday, with Sonay Kartal continuing the charge as she thrashed Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova 6-2 6-2 to book her place in the last 32.

"Today was a good day at the office," she said.

Katie Boulter followed Norrie on Court One for her clash with Argentina's Solana Sierra, while British number one Emma Raducanu was also in action later on day three against 2023 champion Marketa Vondrousova.

Norrie's reign as British number one was ended by Jack Draper, who he surprisingly beat on Court One last year in the second round, and he has struggled to reach the heights of 2021 when he won the Miami Open and 2022 when he lost to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals at Wimbledon.

He lost in the first round of both his warm-up events on grass, but after an excursion on Court 18 on Monday,where he beat Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut, he was handed a Court One slot for his clash with Tiafoe.

FREE-HITTING TIAFOE

Initially it was the free-hitting Tiafoe who looked right at home, taking a tight opening set with a single break of serve.

But everything changed at the end of the second.

Norrie found himself in big trouble when serving at 4-4, going down 0-40. But he reeled off five points in a row to avert the danger and broke in the next game with a superb low backhand winner to snatch the set.

Left-hander Norrie, who had never previously beaten a top-20 player at Wimbledon, bristled with energy in the third set, dictating the points as Tiafoe began to fade.

Norrie failed to capitalise on one break of serve as he allowed Tiafoe to reply, but another break proved decisive as he moved to within one set of victory.

Tiafoe left the court for seven minutes for a bathroom break before the start of the fourth set but Norrie refused to be thrown off his stride and broke serve for a 4-3 lead.

Again Tiafoe responded, but Norrie was relentless as he again pounced on the American's serve before completing victory.

Tiafoe's exit means 14 of the 32 men's seeds are out of the tournament less than halfway through the first week.

FONSECA CONTINUES TO DELIGHT

Joao Fonseca buried his face in his cap before soaking up a roaring ovation after the Brazilian teen sensation battled past Jenson Brooksby 6-4 5-7 6-2 6-4 and matched his best Grand Slam run by making the third round.

The rapidly rising star of men's tennis attracts supporters by the thousands at tournaments and the samba-tinged atmosphere when he is on court can often resemble soccer matches with many fans dressed in Brazil jerseys chanting his name throughout.

Cheers from Fonseca's match echoed through the All England Club on a sun-drenched afternoon as he beat Brooksby in a little over three hours to become the first Brazilian man to reach the third round since Thomaz Bellucci in 2010.

"It's something to be proud of, for sure," said Fonseca, who is playing in only his fourth tour-level event on grass.

"It's a great achievement. I'm very proud of myself with the way I played today. It's an opportunity to be here and play this amazing tournament. Being in the third round is just amazing.

"I'm very happy the way that I've developed on this surface, I'm evolving. So I'm happy with it."

There has been immense hype around Fonseca after he beat Andrey Rublev in straight sets at the Australian Open for his first victory over a top-10 opponent and won his first ATP Tour title in Buenos Aires in February.

After a run to the French Open third round in May, the 18-year-old Fonseca became the youngest man to make the same stage at Wimbledon since Bernard Tomic in 2011.

His reward is a meeting with Chilean Nicolas Jarry and fans of both players are likely to create a boisterous atmosphere.

"I know Chile fans, they're loud. Yeah, the Brazilians are loud too. It's going to be nice," Fonseca said.

"Nico is a nice person and also a nice player. He has a very good serve. He's playing good on grass. It's just going to be a new experience, very nice.

"I'm just going to enjoy, play my best tennis, and hopefully I can go to the fourth round."

RUBLEV DOWNS SA'S HARRIS

Andrey Rublev got the win but no easy ride as he fought past Lloyd Harris 6-7 6-4 7-6 6-3 in a bruising second-round duel on Court Three.

The 14th seed, who has reached 10 Grand Slam quarterfinals without converting any into a semifinal appearance, came off court sounding less relieved than reflective.

"Now the level is different," Rublev said. "Everybody knows how to hit the ball. Everybody can be dangerous. Everybody knows how to serve over 200 (kph). Now it's more about who is more stable, more focused, who is more ready."

Rublev beat South African Harris at Wimbledon in 2021 but the intervening years have levelled the playing field in ways that surprised even the experienced Russian.

"Three years ago, I felt like if I just focused, there was no chance I would lose. Today, even with full focus, it was really tough to beat him," he said.

"The level is different. Everybody knows how to shoot hard now. They are going for the shots. In or out, it doesn't matter, 50/50, because then they know that they serve 200 (kph), they hold the serve.

"Before it was more (tactical), more strategy, how you play, how you defend, how you bring the balls back. Now, okay, you have tactic. Okay, I want to play like this. The guy serve 220, ace. Okay, you return. He shoot full power next set.

"Tactics don't really work that much anymore. Only when it's slower courts, and then yes. Then we see more rallies, then more tactics. Then the guy who is more prepared physically normally wins. Here when it's fast, now we see that everybody can shoot the ball hard, and that's why everybody have chances."

Next up is crafty French veteran Adrian Mannarino who promises to test Rublev's patience in entirely different ways.

"We've played many times. He can drive everybody crazy," Rublev said. "He's super talented. You need a lot of patience. He knows how to defend well, how to bring the balls back. That makes you go for extra risk, which makes you miss more."

With the draw opening up and the grass playing fast, Rublev may never have a better opportunity to finally reach a Grand Slam semifinal – assuming he can navigate the new reality of tennis where everyone can "shoot the ball hard."

MORE RESULTS

Nuno Borges (POR) bt Billy Harris (GBR) 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (9/7)

Karen Khachanov (RUS x17) bt Shintaro Mochizuki (JPN) 1-6, 7-6 (9/7), 4-6, 6-3, 6-4

Nicolas Jarry (CHI) bt Learner Tien (USA) 6-2, 6-2, 6-3

Adrian Mannarino (FRA) bt Valentin Royer (FRA) 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7/1)

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