Carlos Alcaraz’s latest up and down Wimbledon performance began with the removal of the set. Later on Sunday, he was no longer able to fall behind in the third time. And, as he often does, Alcaraz grabbed the moment, produced magic and approached his third consecutive title at the All England Club.
Alkaraz extended his winning streak in the Grass Court Grand Slam Tournament to 18 games – then ran his unbeaten event to 22 to return to the quarterfinals, beating 14-seeded Andreil Brev 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court.
Second seed Alkaraz won his 75th major match victory on 87 occasions. This was Bjornborg and John McEnroe, the fastest men in the open era, earning 75 major victories.
In the first matchup of two weeks between two men ranked in the top 20, Alcaraz pulled out his best 3-2 in the third set. First, he had to dodge Rublev’s chances for a break, and he had to do so with the winner of the forehand pass.
After finally holding three, Alkaraz gained an opportunity for his own break and did not let Rublev get away. In an eight-stroke exchange, Alcaraz sprinted from the corner of the court to the other corner, stomping on his right foot and a little slide to bounce the cross-court forehand winner.
Alkaraz spread his arms wide open, pointing to his right ear, worshipping with the loud voice of the crowd, bouncing off the underside of the stadium’s closed roof.
Rublev sat in his sideline chair, looked up at his guest box and made a “OK” hand signal. After just 10 minutes, the set belongs to Alcaraz. Alcaraz will face 2022 semi-finalist Cam Nolly on Tuesday for the semi-final berth.
“I’ve always said it was about believing in myself,” Alkaraz said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re in love from one set. Tennis is a sport that can change with just one point. One point can completely change the match and it changes everything.”
At 22, Alcaraz already owns five Grand Slam trophies, making his second match before his 23rd birthday, chasing after Boris Becker’s 13.
Alcaraz has not lost his match against Holga Rune in the final at Barcelona since April 20th.
ESPN research and Associated Press contributed to this report.
