Latest news with #Alcaraz
The Guardian
4 hours ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Alcaraz, Sinner, Sabalenka and Swiatek top Wimbledon bill but have work cut out
About three hours and 45 minutes into his duel with Carlos Alcaraz three weeks ago, Jannik Sinner lowered himself into his return stance for what he hoped would be the last rally of a near-flawless fortnight. Sinner held three championship points for what would be one of the most monumental victories of his career. Just one of those three would have earned him a first grand slam title away from hard courts and redefined the terms of engagement with Alcaraz, the only player to beat him for 10 months. Sinner would then have drawn level with the Spaniard on four grand slam titles. The margins that determine success have always been precarious but few occasions exemplified this like Paris. Instead of Sinner reinforcing his status as the world's best, Alcaraz produced another legendary moment in his young career with one of the greatest comebacks of all time. Although the Italian remains No 1 and the best player in the world based on his performances over the past year, on the eve of Wimbledon Alcaraz is the player to beat. Since Roland Garros, the momentum and good vibes surrounding the champion have only increased. He followed his three-day interlude in Ibiza by winning at Queen's Club for a second time. While he still considers clay his favourite surface, the 22-year-old's grass record is astounding. He has amassed 29 wins and three defeats, winning 25 of his past 26 matches on the surface. He has more grass-court titles – four – than losses. He heads into Wimbledon as the clear favourite and will attempt to become the fifth man in the Open era to win the singles title three times in a row. It will take time for Sinner, who is nine months older, to come to terms with the French Open defeat, which was still playing on his mind when he lost in the second round of the Halle Open last week to Alexander Bublik. But another grand slam tournament also provides him with an opportunity to forge ahead with fresh motivation. Alcaraz and Sinner have shared the past six grand slam titles, shutting out the rest of the field and until there is a significant shift, it is difficult to choose the rest of the field over these two players. Novak Djokovic, however, continues to relish the challenge of trying to disrupt the youngsters. At the age of 38 he has clearly been third-best player at the grand slams this year, reaching two semi-finals, with victories over Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev. On grass, where the seven-time Wimbledon champion's understanding of the surface is second to none and the faster conditions are more helpful to his ageing body, Wimbledon has always represented his biggest opportunity of becoming the oldest slam champion in the Open era. It is clear that Jack Draper will command the most attention at the beginning. The Briton's past year has been remarkable, with the 23-year-old rising from No 40 to No 4, winning his first Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells and reaching his first slam semi-final at the US Open. Draper has everything he could possibly want to make a deep run on the grass – a well-rounded, increasingly complete game and his destructive lefty serve and forehand are well-suited to the fast surface. While most British players have some sort of early breakthrough at Wimbledon, Draper, at 23, has never passed the second round and his success has come on foreign shores. He has never experienced the pressure and attention that comes with being a top home player and genuine contender on Centre Court. In the long run, Draper has the character and single-minded focus to handle these situations and produce his best tennis but the coming week will be a fascinating test of his character and current readiness for these moments. The women's draw is shrouded in even more uncertainty. Aryna Sabalenka has clearly established herself as the top player but, like Sinner, she arrives at Wimbledon with her ego bruised after her dramatic three-set defeat to Coco Gauff in the French Open final. Her tactless comments after the defeat, and the backlash they generated, only made things even more difficult for her. The Belarusian remains the favourite to win a first Wimbledon title, where the grass aids her ultra-offensive shotmaking. Beyond Sabalenka, there is even less clarity. Gauff has solidified herself as a true championship player by winning her second slam in Paris. However, despite her breakthrough run coming at Wimbledon, when she reached the fourth round from qualifying on her slam debut as a 15-year-old, the American, now 21, has struggled to find her best on grass. Iga Swiatek's difficulties on grass are similarly well established but, with every year, the former world No 1 does appear to grow more comfortable. After an extremely difficult period on court this year, she did leave Roland Garros with her head held high despite her dominance in Paris coming to an end after her semi-final loss to Sabalenka. As is often the case, contenders could come from anywhere. Five months on from her stunning triumph at the Australian Open, Madison Keys remains effective both on grass and at slams. Mirra Andreeva's improved serve should make her even more dangerous this year. In a sport where the margins are so tight, and there are so many players capable of performing at a high level on their day, this Wimbledon may well be decided by whoever truly rises to the occasion when they most need to.
Observer
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Observer
Alcaraz starts Wimbledon defence against Fognini
LONDON: Carlos Alcaraz will start his Wimbledon defence against Fabio Fognini while world number one Jannik Sinner faces a potential semi-final clash against Novak Djokovic following Friday's draw. On the women's side, reigning champion Barbora Krejcikova will begin her campaign against rising star Alexandra Eala on Centre Court if she can recover from injury. Spain's Alcaraz, who has beaten Djokovic in the past two finals at the All England Club, returns to Wimbledon, which starts on Monday, on a career-best 18-match winning streak. He is aiming to become just the fifth man to win at least three straight Wimbledon titles in the Open Era after Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Djokovic. The Spaniard, 22, has a 2-0 head-to-head record against Italian Fognini, who is 38. Sinner's pursuit of a maiden Wimbledon crown could hinge on a heavyweight semi-final clash with seven-time champion Djokovic. The Italian, who lost to Alcaraz in the recent French Open final, opens against compatriot Luca Nardi at the grass-court major. Djokovic, competing at his lowest seeding (sixth) since 2018, will begin his campaign for a record-tying eighth Wimbledon men's title against Frenchman Alexandre Muller. The Serb, who has been in every final since 2018, is seeded for a quarter-final meeting with British fourth seed Jack Draper, who meets Argentina's Sebastian Baez in the first round. Djokovic is aiming to win a record 25th Grand Slam, which would take him clear of his tie with the long-retired Margaret Court, and has the added incentive of matching Roger Federer's record tally of Wimbledon men's titles. World number three Alexander Zverev, who starts against France's Arthur Rinderknech, is seeded to meet Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals. Fifth-seeded American Fritz faces big-serving Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard from France. - Krejcikova injury woes - Krejcikova missed the first five months of 2025 with a back injury and was forced to withdraw from this week's Eastbourne quarter-finals due to a thigh injury. Her first-round opponent, Eala, a 20-year-old from the Philippines, is ranked a lowly 74. But Eala captured the tennis world's attention in March by defeating three Grand Slam champions — Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek — to reach the Miami semi-finals. Top seed Aryna Sabalenka, hoping to progress beyond the semi-finals at Wimbledon for the first time, opens against fast-rising Canadian qualifier Carson Branstine. The Belarusian has won three Grand Slams but lost in the Australian Open final and the French Open final this year. Her potential third-round opponents include 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, Nottingham winner McCartney Kessler and 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu. Home favourite Raducanu takes on British qualifier Mingge Xu in the first round. Second seed Coco Gauff, who beat Sabalenka at Roland Garros, starts against Nottingham finalist Dayana Yastremska. Potentially intriguing second-round matchups include third seed Jessica Pegula against Queen's champion and 2022 Wimbledon semi-finalist Tatjana Maria. Former French Open champion Ostapenko could play two-time Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur in round two, while Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen may face former world number one Naomi Osaka at the same stage. Five-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek faces a potential fourth-round clash against former champion Elena Rybakina and a quarter-final with Gauff, having dropped to eighth in the rankings. — AFP
USA Today
6 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Wimbledon 2025 draw results: Bracket revealed for men's, women's singles tournament
The 2025 Wimbledon draw and bracket were released ahead of the start to the 138th edition of the grass court tennis Grand Slam, and the path Carlos Alvarez must take to chase some lofty company in the tournament's history books began to crystallize. The 22-year-old Spaniard is the two-time defending men's singles champion at Wimbledon and just won the French Open men's singles title for the second year in a row on the clay at Roland Garros. A three-peat would cement Alcaraz with some of the all-time greats at the All England Club. Since the Open era began in 1968, only Roger Federer (2003-07), Pete Sampras (1993-95; 1997-2000) and Bjorn Borg (1976-80) have managed to win Wimbledon three years in a row. But Alcaraz will begin this year's men's singles tournament as the No. 2 seed behind Italian Jannik Sinner, the defending Australian Open and U.S. Open champion who Alcaraz beat in an epic French Open final. On the women's side, Barbora Krejčíková is the defending singles champion, but will be the No. 17 seed in 2025. Aryna Sabalenka is the No. 1 seed ahead American Coco Gauff, who is the No. 2 seed despite beating Sabalenka in the 2025 French Open final. American Jessica Pegula is the No. 3 seed in the women's singles bracket. Here's a look at the complete draw and bracket for the 2025 Wimbledon men's and women's singles tournaments: Wimbledon 2025 men's singles draw, bracket Note: First-round matchups are listed as eight 16-player brackets, with the winner after the fourth round from each bracket qualifying for the Wimbledon quarterfinals Quarterfinal spot 1 Quarterfinal spot 2 Quarterfinal spot 3 Quarterfinal spot 4 Quarterfinal spot 5 Quarterfinal spot 6 Quarterfinal spot 7 Quarterfinal spot 8 Wimbledon 2025 women's singles draw, bracket Note: First-round matchups are listed as eight 16-player brackets, with the winner after the fourth round from each bracket qualifying for the Wimbledon quarterfinals Quarterfinal spot 1 Quarterfinal spot 2 Quarterfinal spot 3 Quarterfinal spot 4 Quarterfinal spot 5 Quarterfinal spot 6 Quarterfinal spot 7 Quarterfinal spot 8 Watch Wimbledon with Fubo 2025 Wimbledon schedule The 2025 Wimbledon Championships are slated to begin on Monday, June 30 and run through Sunday, July 13. Men's and women's singles begin on June 30, while the men's and women's doubles and mixed doubles brackets begin play on Wednesday, July 2. Here's a breakdown of the complete schedule for this year's fortnight at Wimbledon. Watch Wimbledon with ESPN+ How to watch 2025 Wimbledon Championships
New Indian Express
7 hours ago
- Sport
- New Indian Express
Wimbledon's draw puts Alcaraz against Fognini in the first round. Coco Gauff faces Yastremska
LONDON: Carlos Alcaraz will begin his bid for a third consecutive Wimbledon championship and put his career-best 18-match winning streak on the line by facing the volatile Fabio Fognini in the first round at Centre Court when the tournament begins Monday. The singles brackets for the grass-court Grand Slam tournament were set in Friday's draw, including potential men's quarterfinals of No. 1 Jannik Sinner against No. 7 Lorenzo Musetti, No. 4 Jack Draper against No. 6 Novak Djokovic — who has won seven of his 24 major trophies at the All England Club — No. 2 Alcaraz against No. 8 Holger Rune, and No. 3 Alexander Zverev against No. 5 Taylor Fritz. The possible women's quarterfinals are No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka vs. No. 6 Madison Keys, and No. 4 Jasmine Paolini vs. No. 5 Zheng Qinwen in the top half, and No. 2 Coco Gauff vs. No. 8 Iga Swiatek or 2022 champion Elena Rybakina, and No. 3 Jessica Pegula vs. No. 7 Mirra Andreeva in the bottom half. In addition to Sinner, Djokovic, Draper and 2024 semifinalist Musetti, the top half has No. 10 Ben Shelton and No. 13 Tommy Paul of the United States, along with Alexander Bublik, an unpredictable and underarm-serving player from Kazakhstan. He reached his first major quarterfinal at the French Open by defeating Draper — his potential third-round opponent next week — and then won a grass-court title at Halle, Germany, for the second time, beating Sinner along the way. Alcaraz and Sinner could only meet at Wimbledon in the July 13 final, which would be rematch of their epic showdown for the French Open title won by the 22-year-old Alcaraz for his fifth major trophy. In Fognini, Alcaraz faces a 38-year-old veteran who has been ranked as high as No. 9 and was a French Open quarterfinalist in 2011 but is currently No. 130 and never has been past the third round in 14 previous appearances at Wimbledon.
UPI
7 hours ago
- Sport
- UPI
Wimbledon 2025 draw shows potential Gauff-Swiatek, Shelton-Sinner QFs
1 of 5 | French Open champion Coco Gauff of the United States has yet to advance past the fourth round at Wimbledon. File Photo by Hugo Philpott/UPI | License Photo June 27 (UPI) -- Potential quarterfinal collisions between No. 2 Coco Gauff and former No. 1 Iga Swiatek and top-ramked Jannik Sinner and American Ben Shelton were revealed through Friday's Wimbledon 2025 draw. Main-draw play for the third Grand Slam of the tennis season will be held from Monday through July 13 at the All-England Lawn Tennis Club in London. The respective women's and men's singles finals will be held July 12 and 13. Wimbledon white garb will glow over the pristine perennial ryegrass courts over 14 days as elite men's and women's tennis talents fight for the Gentlemen's Singles Trophy, Venus Rosewater Dish and respective $4.1 million first-place prizes. Coverage will air on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+ and Disney+. The full draws are available here. A broadcast schedule is listed below. No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain will attempt to become just the fifth man to win three-consecutive Wimbledon singles crowns in the Open Era (since 1968), joining No. 6 Novak Djokovic of Serbia and retired tennis legends Roger Federer of Switzerland, American Pete Sampras and Swede Bjorn Borg. Outside of Alcaraz and Djokovic, none of the other 126 players in the 2025 men's singles draw own a Wimbledon title. Either Alcaraz or Sinner won the last six men's Grand Slam singles titles. Alcaraz, Sinner and Djokovic are the only men's players to win Grand Slam singles crowns since Rafael Nadal won the 2022 French Open. Alcaraz is the men's singles favorite, followed by Sinner, Djokovic, No. 4 Jack Draper of Great Britain and No. 3 Alexander Zverev of Germany. No. 9 Daniil Medvedev of Russia, No. 30 Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan, No. 5 Taylor Fritz of the United States and No. 25 Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic are among Top 10 favorites. Women's No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus is the women's favorite. No. 11 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, No. 2 Coco Gauff of the United States, No. 8 Iga Swiatek of Poland and No. 7 Mirra Andreeva of Russia are the other expected contenders for the women's title. No. 73 Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic, No. 4 Jasmine Paolini of Italy and Americans Madison Keys (No. 6) and Jessica Pegula (No. 3) are among the other women's favorites. In contrast to the dominance of the men's trio, eight different women won Wimbledon over the last eight editions of the tournament. Sabalenka will start her quest for her maiden Wimbledon title against No. 198 Carson Branstine of Canada. No. 38 Emma Raducanu of Great Britain and Vondrousova -- the 2023 champion -- are among the top players who could meet the Belarusian as soon as the third round. No. 14 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine is the highest-ranked player Sabalenka could face in the fourth round. No. 9 Paula Badosa of Spain and Keys are among the players she could battle in the quarterfinals. Gauff, the French Open champion attempting to win her third different Grand Slam, will start her London run against No. 42 Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine. The winner of that match will play No. 105 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus or No. 94 Anastasia Zakharova of Russia in the second round. Americans Sofia Kenin (No. 28) and Taylor Townsend (No. 98) could face Gauff in the third round. No. 16 Daria Kasatkina of Australia and No. 19 Liudmila Samsonova of Russia are the top players who could meet Gauff in the fourth round. Swiatek, Rybakina, No. 23 Clara Tauson, No. 26 Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine, No. 52 Danielle Collins of the United States and No. 85 Maria Sakkari of Greece are among the players with potential paths to meet Gauff in the quarterfinals. Gauff could face Pegula, Andreeva, No. 10 Emma Navarro of the United States, No. 15 Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic, defending champion Barbora Krejcikova (No. 17) of the Czech Republic or No. 18 Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia in the semifinals. Sinner will take on fellow Italian Luca Nardi (No. 94) in the first round. No. 29 Denis Shapovalov of Canada is the top player he could battle in the third round. No. 13 Tommy Paul of the United States and No. 21 Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria could face Sinner as soon as the fourth round. No. 10 Ben Shelton of the United States, No. 20 Ugo Humbert of France, No. 7 Lorenzo Musetti of Italy and No. 32 Brandon Nakashima of the United States are among the top players would could meet Sinner in the quarterfinals. Sinner beat Shelton in the fourth round of Wimbledon 2024, but lost to Medvedev in a quarterfinal. Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the 2024 finale, Draper, No. 11 Alex de Minaur of Australia and No. 17 Jakub Mensik of the Czech Republic are the to players Sinner could see in the semifinals. Alcaraz will start his Wimbledon run against No. 130 Fabio Fognini of Italy. The Spaniard could face No. 27 Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada as soon as the third round. No. 14 Andrey Rublev of Russia and No. 24 Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece are the top players he could battle in the fourth round. No. 12 Frances Tiafoe of the United States and No. 8 Holger Rune of Denmark are the top players he could meet in the quarterfinals. Zverev, Fritz, the top ranked American, Medvedev, No. 18 Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina, No. 19 Karen Khachanov of Russia and No. 22 Alexei Popyrin of Australia are staring at potential semifinal paths with Alcaraz. Wimbledon 2025 All times EDT Monday First-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+, Disney+ Tuesday First-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+ Wednesday Second-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+ Thursday Second-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+ July 4 Third-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+ July 5 Third-round coverage from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN+; 1 to 4 p.m. on ABC, ESPN+; 6 to 9:55 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN Deportes July 6 Round of 16 coverage from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN+; 1 to 4 p.m. on ABC, ESPN+; 6 to 9 a.m. and noon to 4 p.m. on ESPN Deportes July 7 Round of 16 coverage from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+; 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ESPN July 8 Quarterfinal coverage from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+; 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on ESPN Deportes July 9 Quarterfinal coverage from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+; 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on ESPN Deportes July 10 Women's semifinal coverage at 8 a.m. on ESPN, ESPN+; 8:30 a.m. on ESPN Deportes July 11 Men's semifinal coverage at 8 a.m. on ESPN, ESPN+; 8:30 a.m. on ESPN Deportes July 12 Women's final coverage at 11 a.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+; Encore presentation at 3 p.m. on ABC, ESPN+ July 13 Men's final coverage at 11 a.m. on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+; Encore presentation at 3 p.m. on ABC, ESPN+
