At this point in the tournament, on the eve of the second week at Wimbledon, Carlos Alcaraz (20) begins to play Djokovic.
Perhaps warned by his muscular cramps at Roland Garros, that physical block that had left him out of the game against the Serbian in Paris, a month ago, Alcaraz guards himself against exhibitions, races without rhyme or reason and even drop shots.
Now he prefers to speculate and manage the tempos, and keep his serve unblemished and wait for the moment to break the opponent’s serve. He doesn’t give away highlights, highlights to retain on the retina, he simply advances in the match.
And when it smells blood, then it bites.
Nicolás Jarry (27) is not so used to moving at these heights. At least until a few months ago. A year ago he was 129th in the world. Today he is the 28th. The numbers say it all: it has grown tremendously in a very short time. In this 2023 he has won two titles, one in Geneva and the other in Santiago de Chile, both on clay, and now, on grass, he is colossal in his dimensions (he measures 1.98m) and in his tennis .
Relying on his serve and his powerful forehand, blessed by his long levers, Jarry resigned himself in the first set but became great in the second set, a moment that coincided with a blackout from Alcaraz.
These passages are common in Murcian tennis.
Alcaraz usually starts with brio and settles up in the first set, in the same way that he usually disconnects later, when he is sailing with a favorable wind.
If the rival intuits a passage through which to sneak, he does it that way. Jarry sees it, and acts: he squeezes Alcaraz’s downer. In the second set, the Chilean’s serve is a hammer for the Murcian, who responds from unorthodox positions, often forced, and fails to direct the score.
The confusion lasted until the tie break. In that section, the Chilean seems like the franchise tennis player and Alcaraz, the aspirant. It is true that the Murcian delivers a good couple of arreones, some serve-volleys that excite the Wimbledon parish, protected by the retractable roof (in this first week, the dance of matches and suspensions on account of the chirimiri has been gibberish for the organizers; the meteorologists assure that, in the next week, the weather will be more generous with tennis), but it is not enough for him.
So the set slips away from Murcia and uncertainty embraces the Spanish fans: if Alcaraz doesn’t react, things could get ugly.
And Alcaraz reacts.
And he plays like Djokovic.
He temporizes and defends himself, distorts the postures when returning, blocks the racket and tames the big man, who loses steam and the third set but does not give up: Jarry returns stronger in the fourth set.
This Jarry is not scared that he had never seen himself like this, on the Wimbledon Center Court, the world cathedral of tennis, and fighting against the number 1 in the world. We’ll see if it’s a one hit wonder, but now Jarry intends to enjoy the moment, the day, and the parish blesses him. Wimbledon applauds his serve and he is also successful in the rest: in the second game he breaks Alcaraz’s serve and then projects to 0-3.
Again, the alarms go off in the Murcian box.
And again, the Murcian turns them off.
While Juan Carlos Ferrero, his coach, snorts in the box, Alcaraz tempers himself, elevates his tennis to the rest and puts pressure on Jarry, who ends up losing the lead break and loses it again in the decisive stretch, when the match plunges into the deep waters.
In the round of 16, the winner of the Zverev-Berrettini awaits him, which will be played at the close of this edition.
