Alcaraz Breaks New Ground With Wimbledon Win

Carlos Alcaraz was in trouble Monday when he rallied from two sets to one down to defeat Jan-Lennard Struff in five sets at Wimbledon. The Spaniard was able to breathe a little easier on Wednesday.

The fifth seed defeated Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor 6-4, 7-6(0), 6-3 to reach the third round at the grass-court major for the first time. At just 19, he has now made the third round at all four majors.

"It was a pretty good match for my side," Alcaraz said. "I played really well. I enjoyed playing the [No. 2] Court. Really happy [I] got the win today."

This is only the teen's second appearance at SW19. Last season he made his debut, losing in the second round against Daniil Medvedev.

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It has been a breakthrough season for Alcaraz, who has claimed his first two ATP Masters 1000 titles in Monte Carlo and Madrid, while also claiming crowns at ATP 500 events in Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona. He cracked the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time in April.

Alcaraz lost serve just once in his two-hour, five-minute victory, in which he hit 39 winners to just 20 unforced errors. Alcaraz will next play 32nd seed German Oscar Otte, who advanced after just four games — he led 3-1 — when American qualifier Christian Harrison retired. 

"[I] felt more comfortable today than [in] the first round," Alcaraz said. "But obviously... I need more hours on court, on grass, to feel more comfortable."

Otte is a dangerous grass-court player with his aggressive game. The German made the semi-finals on the surface in Stuttgart and Halle, where the players to whom he lost were in the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings: Matteo Berrettini and Daniil Medvedev.

Last year, Otte reached the second round at Wimbledon as a qualifier. He pushed two-time champion Andy Murray to five sets, but fell short.