Carlos Alcaraz once again put his fans through an emotional ride on Sunday before overcoming Andrey Rublev to secure a spot in the Wimbledon quarter-finals and pursue his third consecutive title.
The Spaniard dropped the first set to the 14th-seeded Russian under the Centre Court roof but found his rhythm to clinch the match with scores of 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, energised by an enthusiastic crowd.
Although Alcaraz’s main challengers, seven-time champion Novak Djokovic and world number one Jannik Sinner, are demonstrating formidable form, the second seed has shown inconsistent performance so far.
The match on Sunday followed a similar pattern as he had difficulty settling in at the beginning, despite showcasing moments of brilliance, before elevating his game.
Alcaraz, who will go up against Britain’s Cameron Norrie in the quarter-finals, remarked that Rublev is one of the most dominant and aggressive players on the men’s circuit.
Rublev claimed the first set in a tie-break; however, Alcaraz managed to secure a break in the eighth game of the second set and served out to equalise the match.
The Russian fought back evenly against his opponent in the third set but missed crucial opportunities, allowing Alcaraz to excite the crowd with a stunning forehand winner that led to a break, ultimately closing the set with an audacious drop shot.
The tide began to turn when Rublev dropped his serve in the fifth game of the fourth set, and Alcaraz seized the moment decisively.
In his opening match, Alcaraz was pushed to five sets by seasoned Italian Fabio Fognini and also dropped a set in the third round against lesser-known Jan-Lennard Struff.
Conversely, Sinner has been flawless, not losing a single set and conceding only 17 games leading up to the fourth round, while Djokovic displayed dominant form in defeating Serbian Davis Cup teammate Miomir Kecmanovic.
Alcaraz and Sinner are the clear frontrunners in men’s tennis, each having won the last six Grand Slam titles as the reign of the “Big Three” begins to wane.
However, the 22-year-old holds an advantage on grass, having won 33 out of 36 Tour-level matches played on the surface. Alcaraz’s last Wimbledon defeat occurred against Sinner in the fourth round of 2022, and he is currently on a career-best 22-match winning streak since April.
After overcoming Djokovic in the past two Wimbledon finals, Alcaraz aims to join an elite circle of Wimbledon legends. He aspires to be the fifth male player in the Open era to claim at least three consecutive Wimbledon titles, joining the ranks of Bjorn Borg, Roger Federer, Pete Sampras, and Djokovic.
