Wimbledon 2025: Fritz downs Davidovich Fokina, reaches fourth round

London, July 4 (IANS) Taylor Fritz continued his march in the men's singles section of Wimbledon 2025 as he channelled his inner energy to move past Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina into the fourth round at the All England Club here on Friday.

Having survived two testing five-set clashes to reach the third round, Fritz delivered a more dominant performance to triumph 6-4, 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-1, overcoming the loss of the third set, which threatened another five-set encounter.

But the fifth-seeded American, who twice received a medical timeout to treat a cut on his right elbow from diving on the grass, eventually came out on top in four sets to register a three-hour, 12-minute victory.

In the fourth game of the second set, Davidovich Fokina charged the net and produced a clean drop shot, which sent Fritz diving to the grass in a bid to recover it. He subsequently lost the point and received his first medical timeout of the day during that game.

“It’s getting pretty annoying having to stop all the time,” Fritz said with a smile when asked about his diving. “I feel bad for my opponent when I keep having to stop all the time, but you can only really do it on grass. I’m just really determined to get some of these balls, and eventually I’m going to win one of these points.”

Competing in front of a star-studded lineup in the Royal Box, which included British boxer Anthony Joshua, Fritz failed to serve out the match at 5-3 in the third set when Davidovich Fokina produced an inspired turn in form to extend their third-round clash. Yet Fritz quickly brushed aside the momentum shift by sealing an early break and racing into the fourth round at SW19 for the third time in four years.

Fritz took another medical timeout after winning the second set to treat a blister on his right foot, but he showed few signs of discomfort en route to levelling his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Davidovich Fokina at 3-3.

After winning a record-extending fourth title in Eastbourne, where he defeated Davidovich Fokina in the semi-finals, Fritz is riding a seven-match winning streak. In the fourth round at Wimbledon for the third time, the two-time quarter-finalist Fritz will next face Luciano Darderi or Jordan Thompson.

Fritz produced a memorable fourth-round comeback win against Alexander Zverev, in which he rallied from two sets down to stun the fourth seed. Currently at No. 5 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, Fritz has the opportunity to reclaim the World No. 4 spot from Jack Draper, who was upset by Marin Cilic on Thursday, with another deep run at Wimbledon.

--IANS

bsk/