Alcaraz labours to opening round win at Wimbledon

Agency :

Men’s singles defending champion Carlos Alcaraz was dragged into a five-set marathon battle by Italy’s Fabio Fognini, as the Spaniard needed four hours and 37 minutes to progress from the first round at Wimbledon 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-5, 2-6, 6-1 on Monday.

Alcaraz, 22, struggled on his serve under the scorching sun, while 38-year-old Fognini, who was making his final Wimbledon appearance, showed great resilience and net skills.

The world No. 2 was forced to play until the deciding set before extending his winning streak to 19 matches. The two-time defending champion will face British wildcard Oliver Tarvet in the second round.

“I knew at the beginning that it was going to be really difficult playing against Fabio,” said Alcaraz who defended his French Open title earlier this month. “The talent that Fabio has is immense. In every match he can show his best tennis. I think today he has shown one of his best tennis.”

Eighth seed Holger Rune of Denmark and ninth seed Daniil Medvedev were both knocked out of the first round. Rune lost to Nicolas Jarry of Chile 4-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4, while Medvedev was defeated by France’s Benjamin Bonzi 7-6(2), 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-2.

This is the first ever opening round exit for Medvedev at the grass-court Grand Slam.
“I felt him playing very well. I felt like I didn’t play too bad. I don’t see much I could do better. I mean, it’s grass, so I could serve better on the tiebreak,” said the 29-year-old former US Open champion.