SportsPosted at: Jun 30 2025 11:33PM


Alcaraz survives first-round scare at Wimbledon

London, June 30 (UNI) Two-time defending Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz survived a dramatic first-round scare on a sweltering Centre Court, edging past Italy’s Fabio Fognini in five sets to begin his title defence today. In a four-hour, 37-minute marathon that tested endurance and nerve, Alcaraz emerged victorious 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-5, 2-6, 6-1 on the hottest opening day in Wimbledon history, with temperatures reaching 31.4°C.
Fognini, 38 and playing his final Wimbledon, turned back the clock with sublime shotmaking and spirited resistance, pushing Alcaraz to the brink. But the Spaniard, World No. 2 and 2024 French Open champion, held his nerve to extend his Grand Slam first-round record to 18-0 and notch a 15th consecutive Wimbledon win.
“I don’t know why it’s his last Wimbledon,” said Alcaraz post-match. “With the level he’s shown, he could play for three or four more years. It was an honour to share the court with him.”
Alcaraz entered Wimbledon riding an 18-match winning streak, his longest ever, and seeking to emulate Bjorn Borg by completing back-to-back Roland Garros-Wimbledon doubles. Yet, Fognini, coming off a 10-match tour-level losing streak, proved a fierce opponent.
With David Beckham watching from the Royal Box, Alcaraz rallied from a break down in the third and produced a clinical fifth set to avoid joining Manuel Santana (1967) and Lleyton Hewitt (2003) as defending champions eliminated in the first round.
“Playing the first match on Centre Court is never easy,” said the 21-year-old Spaniard. “Wimbledon feels different. I have to improve, but I gave it everything.”
Alcaraz’s match statistics included saving all five break points in the opening set and surviving 20 unforced errors in the second. In the third, Fognini thrilled the crowd with one of the tournament’s points, breaking back before Alcaraz regained momentum. The Italian then blitzed through the fourth set with 14 winners, but could not sustain the tempo in the fifth as Alcaraz raced away.
Fognini, who famously beat Rafael Nadal in five sets at the 2015 US Open, bows out of Wimbledon with a fifth-set record of 24-17. He left Centre Court to a standing ovation from the spectators and Alcaraz himself.
Alcaraz, now 43-5 this season and chasing a sixth 2025 title, will next face British qualifier Oliver Tarvet, who beat Leandro Riedi in straight sets on his Grand Slam debut.
With Wimbledon dreams intact and history within reach, Alcaraz will look to sharpen his game as he aims for a third straight title at SW19. UNI BDN SSP
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