Wimbledon: Defending Champion Carlos Alcaraz Survives Major Scare, Holds Off Tiafoe In Five-Set Thriller

Carlos Alcaraz in action at Wimbledon Photo : AP

KEY HIGHLIGHTS Carlos Alcaraz beat Frances Tiafoe in the third round of Wimbledon.

Alcaraz will next face Ugo Humbert or Brandon Nakashima.

Alcaraz is chasing his third trophy of the season and fourth major title overall.

Carlos Alcaraz Wimbledon , where he rallied from the brink against Frances Tiafoe to win a five-set thriller. Alcaraz won an intense third-round thriller 5-7, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-2 in front of a raucous Centre Court crowd. Defending championsurvived a major scare on Friday at, where he rallied from the brink againstto win a five-set thriller.won an intense third-round thriller 5-7, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-2 in front of a raucous Centre Court crowd.

Both produced moments of magic, with extended cat-and-mouse rallies the order of the day. With little to separate them, Alcaraz raised the tempo and power off his groundstrokes in the closing stages to seal victory in three hours and 51 minutes.

"It is always a big challenge playing against Frances. He is a really talented player and tough to face and we saw it once again that he deserves to be at the top and deserves to fight for big things. It was really difficult for me to adapt my game, find solutions and try to put him in trouble, but I am really happy to do it at the end of the match," said Alcaraz.

"There were a lot of difficult moments in the fourth set. All I was thinking was 'OK, fight one more ball'. I was just thinking about the next ball and the tie-break I told myself I had to go for it. If I lose it, I lose it. I went for it all the time and it is good for myself to get through once again," he added.

Novak Djokovic Alcaraz has won his past 10 matches at Wimbledon, having defeatedin the final last year. However, his title hopes hung in the balance for large periods on Friday when Tiafoe produced one of his best performances of the season to push the Spaniard to his limit.

The American arrived at SW19 having won consecutive matches at just two tour-level events this year (Delray Beach, Houston). He demonstrated great court craft to pull the World No. 3 around but he could not quite maintain his level in the fifth set against Alcaraz.

Into the fourth round at SW19 for the third consecutive year, Alcaraz will next face Frenchman Ugo Humbert or American Brandon Nakashima .

"My team always say they suffer more than me. They have the feeling that they can't do anything is difficult for them to deal with, but I am thankful for their support," Alcaraz said when asked about his team.

The 21-year-old Alcaraz is chasing his third trophy of the season and fourth major title overall. Last month, he won the French Open to become the youngest man in history to win a major on all three surfaces.

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