Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner to meet in Wimbledon final
Despite a slump in the second set, Carlos Alcaraz beat Taylor Fritz without a hitch. He won in four sets (6-4, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 [8-6]), Friday, July 11, in the Wimbledon semi-finals. He will face Jannik Sinner on Sunday, who eliminated Novak Djokovic in three sets (6-3, 6-3, 6-4). The final of the London tournament will therefore be a rematch of the Roland-Garros final, won by the Spaniard after a memorable encounter. "It's a great honor to share the court with Carlos again, (...) I hope it will be a great match like last time," Sinner anticipated after his victory.
Facing Taylor Fritz, world number 5 and recent winner of two grass-court tournaments (Stuttgart and Eastbourne), Alcaraz started as the favorite. This match confirmed that power alone isn't enough to beat the Spaniard. Despite his cannonball serve, Taylor Fritz never failed to make the world number 2 doubt himself, even though he wasn't having an exceptional day. While he wasn't dazzling, as he has often been since the start of the London fortnight, the "Carlitos" pupil delivered a solid performance.
Despite the persistently scorching temperatures in London, the Spaniard caught his opponent cold from the start of the match, breaking the American's serve from the outset. This was enough of an advantage to comfortably win the first set.
Discomfort in the standsThe second set was evenly matched, with several spectators fainting in the stands on Centre Court, bringing the number of heat-related illnesses to five in two days of competition. Taylor Fritz began to accelerate his forehand down the diagonal, while his opponent made uncharacteristic errors, missing several drop shots.
Alcaraz also double-faulted at the worst possible moment, giving his opponent three set points. The American equalized on another forehand error from the Spaniard, to a standing ovation from the crowd, delighted at the prospect of the fight lasting.
This was the moment Alcaraz chose to do some... Alcaraz. In the next game, the Spaniard drew Fritz to the net with a well-felt drop shot and lobbed him unstoppably to break. He could have made a fist. Putting Fritz under pressure, he broke the American's serve again to close out the third set (6-3). In this third set, the Spaniard stepped on the gas when he decided to, and this time, his drop shots were lethal.
Strong on serve, Taylor Fritz delivered a final stand, managing to snatch a tiebreak from an increasingly dominant Carlos Alcaraz. The American had two chances to get back to two sets all, but the Spaniard bravely came to the net to claim victory.
Although he didn't shine as brightly as he did in the previous round against Cameron Norrie, Alcaraz was never in danger in this match, which lasted almost three hours. A good workout under a blazing sun ahead of Sunday's final, for which the weather forecast promises to be a few degrees cooler.
Djokovic's quest for a 25th Grand Slam victoryJannik Sinner qualified for his first Wimbledon final on Friday by defeating seven-time winner Novak Djokovic, who, at 38, sees one of his last chances to win a record 25th Grand Slam title disappear.
The Italian won 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 in just under two hours. The Serb, currently ranked 6th in the world, never looked like he could trouble Sinner, 15 years his junior, except in the third set, where he had a break point to lead 4-0. But Sinner staved it off and then quelled the revolt, completely reversing the momentum to wrap up the match in 1 hour 55 minutes on his fourth match point.
Djokovic did not appear in full physical condition. He had a thigh massaged at the end of the second set, two days after a "bad slip," as he put it, against another Italian, Flavio Cobolli, in the quarterfinals.
At the twilight of his career, the 100-title champion is driven by the quest for a 25th Grand Slam victory. He is currently tied with Australian Margaret Court, who has amassed 24, some of which came before the Open era – which began in 1968 – and the last in 1973.
His best chances could come on hard courts, at the US Open at the end of the summer and especially in January 2026, at the Australian Open, where he has won ten titles.
Sports Service (with AFP)
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