Fritz Comes Back From Two Sets Down to Reach Wimbledon Quarterfinals
13th seeded American joins Tommy Paul in final eight, marking the first time since 2000 that two American men have reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals
Taylor Fritz is one of the last eight players remaining at Wimbledon.
The American is into the quarterfinals in London for the second time in his career after defeating 13th seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-4, 7-6(3), 6-3 on Monday. The victory marks Fritz’s fourth major quarterfinal overall, and he joins compatriot Tommy Paul in the final eight, the first time since 2000 that two American men have advanced to this stage of the Championships.
“It was amazing to do that on Centre Court from two sets down,” said Fritz. “I thought it would really suck to be playing this well and to lose in three straight. I had the belief. I thought I was playing really good tennis…and that it was just a couple of points here and there. I thought I could take it one set at a time and turn it around.”
While he was playing well through the first two sets, Zverev was in complete control of the match as Fritz was unable to make any headway on the German’s serve. However, at 4-4 in the third set, Fritz finally broke through on his opponent’s serve, breaking for 5-4 and then consolidating to claim the set.
From there, the momentum was on Fritz’s side of the court. After outlasting Zverev in the fourth set tiebreaker, the American dominated the deciding fifth set, and won for the third time in his career after trailing two-sets-to-love.
In all, Fritz blasted 67 winners to just 23 unforced errors. He will now face off against 25th seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy as he aims to reach the first major semifinal of his career.
“It’s going to be a tough match,” said Fritz. “He’s had a really good grass-court season. It’s my second time in the quarterfinals, but this time it feels like I’ve earned it a lot more, so I’m really excited for the chance.”
Paul advanced to the quarterfinals on Sunday with a routine 6-2, 7-6(3), 6-2 victory over Spain’s Roberto Bautista-Agut to reach the second major quarterfinal of his career.
On Tuesday, he will play defending champion and third-seed Carlos Alcaraz for a spot in the semifinals.
