Taylor Fritz will soak up as much rest as possible after a second five-set match at Wimbledon this year, in which he beat Gabriel Diallo.
The American fifth seed at Wimbledon, ATP Tour number five Fritz has now been pushed all the way in rounds one and two.
Fritz has been tipped for a lengthy Wimbledon run, but he’s already survived two big scares against Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Canadian Diallo.
He beat the former 6-7(6-8), 6-7(8-10), 6-4, 7-6(8-6), 6-4 in round one, before securing a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(7-0), 4-6, 6-3 win over the latter in round two.
His matches have comprised 109 games, which represents the third-most that a men’s player has played in the first two rounds of Wimbledon since 2022.
What Taylor Fritz thinks of Gabriel Diallo after winning their Wimbledon match
Fritz will be delighted to have made it through the five-set thriller, particularly given the ability of Diallo and the avoidance of a huge upset.
Speaking of the ATP number 40 after the match, Fritz said: “He is a very good player. I practiced with him in Carson last year.
“I was really impressed with the fact he is such a tall big server and a lot of the times these big servers, when they serve their slider serves, they hit them pretty hard and big.
“He does a great job of getting that cutter serve, short and away. It’s amazing. He spread the court with his serve really well.
“I thought he mixed up his serve really well today which is one of the key things when you are such a big server.
“People are going to be leaning and picking sides and you can hit all the spots. He played some very good return games as well.
“He does not really have a weakness. At times he can be streaky and make some mistakes but I did not really feel there were mistakes coming from one side more than the other.
“I thought his backhand and his forehand both were very solid shots and he had some good return games and his serve is incredible. I think he is a very good player.”
Boris Becker reacts after Taylor Fritz battles into Wimbledon third round
Fritz is under pressure to perform at Wimbledon, which may be one reason behind his unconventional start.
He entered the Grand Slam immediately after winning on the grass at Eastbourne, securing a fourth career title at the event.
Fritz needed a medical timeout en route to the impressive win, which left tennis legend Boris Becker really impressed.
He wrote on X: “Amazing effort from Fritz! Huge respect for his physical and mental toughness… think he will take it easy today!”
His focus now turns to round three of Wimbledon, where the American will take on either Alejandro Davidovich Fokina or Botic van de Zandschulp.
And Fritz certainly needs a rest before that clash, having been on the receiving end of two big servers thus far.
He has managed to fire down 56 aces of his own, but faced 37 from Mpetshi Perricard and 26 from Diallo for a total of 63.
And for added measure, Fritz had to deal with the fastest serve in Wimbledon history as his first round opponent launched a 153 mph (246 km/h) rocket in the opening game.
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