The Japan Times - Alcaraz survives Rublev test to stay on course for Wimbledon hat-trick

The Spaniard lost the first set to the Russian 14th seed under the Centre Court roof but found his feet to win 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, roared on by a partisan crowd.

While Alcaraz's main rivals, seven-time winner Novak Djokovic and world number one Jannik Sinner, are in ominous form, the second seed has blown hot and cold so far.

It was the same story on Sunday as he struggled to find his rhythm early in the match, despite occasional flashes of brilliance, before raising his level.

Rublev took the first set on a tie-break but Alcaraz engineered a break in the eighth game of the second set and served out to level the match.

The Russian matched his opponent blow for blow in the third set but squandered chances and Alcaraz brought the crowd to its feet with a sensational forehand winner to force a break, sealing the set with an audacious drop shot.

The writing was on the wall when Rublev lost his serve in the fifth game of the fourth set and Alcaraz made no mistake.

The Spaniard was taken to five sets by veteran Italian Fabio Fognini in his opening match and also dropped a set against journeyman Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round.

Sinner, by contrast, has not dropped a single set, losing just 17 games on his way to the fourth round, and Djokovic was in imperious form in dispatching Serbian Davis Cup teammate Miomir Kecmanovic.

Alcaraz and Sinner are the undisputed top dogs of men's tennis, sharing the past six Grand Slams between them as the era of the "Big Three" fades.

But the 22-year-old has the edge on grass, winning 33 of his 36 Tour-level matches on the surface.

The five-time Grand Slam winner's last defeat at Wimbledon came against Sinner in the fourth round in 2022 and he is on a career-best 22-match winning run since April.

Having vanquished Djokovic in the past two Wimbledon finals, Alcaraz is looking to join an elite group of Wimbledon icons.

He hopes to become the fifth man in the Open era to win at least three consecutive Wimbledon titles after Bjorn Borg, Roger Federer, Pete Sampras and seven-time champion Djokovic.

M.Yamazaki--JT