After a wet and rain-delayed week of play, we finally enter the second week of Wimbledon. And if you’re looking for some good tennis, you’ve found it on Day 8.
Carlos Alcaraz and Matteo Berrettini played a one-game barn burner on Monday in which the momentum went back and forth like pinball. Even though the game ended with Alcaraz winning 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3, it was much closer than the scoreline would suggest. Every point was contested and the grunts of effort were constant.
Alcaraz is a clay/hard court guy and doesn’t have a ton of grass court experience. He won his first title on grass just a few weeks ago at the Queen’s Club Championships, and you can see how focused he needs to be to play his best game on this surface. Alcaraz is one of the happiest players you’ll see on the pitch, but smiles are rare. He hasn’t been glum or angry, just extremely serious about improving his grass game and focusing on that 100%.
Berrettini, meanwhile, is a weed specialist. He made the final in 2021 (losing to Novak Djokovic), but missed Wimbledon 2022 due to injury. As a fantastic grass-court player, he was pretty broken having to stay at home. He spoke about it after one of his wins last week.
In Monday’s match, Berrettini took advantage of Alcaraz’s slow start to take a one-set lead, but Alcaraz fought back, winning the second set with just three unforced errors. Then, at the start of the third set, Alcaraz pulled off this absolutely ridiculous post trick.
Alcaraz managed to close the match in four sets and three hours, advancing to their first Wimbledon quarter-final. With shots like this, it’s no wonder.
How did the Americans do it?
There are only three Americans left at Wimbledon right now, and two of them – Chris Eubanks and Madison Keys – played on Monday. Both have won their matches and are heading to the quarter-finals. This is Eubanks’ first Grand Slam quarter-final and Keys’ first Wimbledon quarter-final since 2015. You can read more about their extraordinary matches here.
Who Goes to the Quarter-Finals: Women’s Edition
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Aryna Sabalenka, the No. 2 seed, had no problem dispatching Ekaterina Alexandrova. After a tough first set, which Sabalenka won 6-4, she demolished Alexandrova and snagged a bagel on her for a 6-0 win in the second set.
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Ons Jabeur, seeded n°7, literally crushed Petra Kvitova, who played nothing like her. It’s unusual to see Kvitova so sweet and moody. Jabeur, on the other hand, played with a strength and confidence that allowed her to be truly free and bold. She beat Kvitova 6-0, 6-3 in just 63 minutes.
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Elena Rybakina, the 2022 defending champion, heads into the quarter-finals after Beatriz Haddad Maia retired due to injury after just 27 minutes.
Who goes to the quarter-finals: men’s edition
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Novak Djokovic beat Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(6), 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4 in a match that started on Sunday and was suspended due to Wimbledon’s incredibly irritating curfew . Starting two sets later, Hurkacz won the third set to stay in, but was unable to get past Djokovic in the fourth set.
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Daniil Medvedev only played 91 minutes on Monday. Not because he was dominant, but because his opponent, Jiri Lehecka, was forced to retire through injury. It gives Medvedev his first trip to the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
Highlight of the day
During the Medvedev-Lehecka match, one of Lehecka’s comebacks ended in a spectator’s Pimm’s Cup.