Watch: Carlos Alcaraz Shows Insane Defensive Skills During a Rally Against Andrey Rublev at Wimbledon

Alcaraz has had a habit of being inconsistent throughout matches at Wimbledon, barring the second round match. The fourth round encounter against Rublev was no different as the Russian took the first set. Alcaraz had lost two sets against Fabio Fognini in the first round. Then, he lost a set against Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round.

What does Wimbledon mean for Carlos Alcaraz in terms of ATP rankings

Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz has 2000 points to defend at Wimbledon being the defending champion. The Spaniard won against Novak Djokovic in last year’s final to secure his second consecutive title at SW19.

Alcaraz is way ahead of Jannik Sinner in the ATP Race to Turin. However, he still more than a 1000 points behind the Italian in the ATP Rankings.

This is the second-last tournament that he has to defend this season. The last will came at the China Open, where he edged Sinner in the last set tiebreak last year. Apart from that, pressure will be on Sinner to defend the ranking points at the Cincinnati Open, US Open, Shanghai Masters, and the ATP Finals.

Carlos Alcaraz edges past Andrey Rublev

World No.2 Carlos Alcaraz overcame a strong start from Andrey Rublev to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals on Sunday evening. The defending champion responded with some of his best tennis of the tournament so far. Despite losing the opening set, he fought back with confidence on Centre Court.

Alcaraz, ranked No. 2 in the world, won the match 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in just under three hours. It was the first men’s singles match of the tournament between two Top 20 players. The 22-year-old raised his level after the first set and thrilled the crowd with his trademark shot-making and court coverage.

Rublev, ranked No. 14, put up a solid fight but couldn’t stop Alcaraz from grabbing a single break in each of the final three sets. A standout moment came in the third set when Alcaraz broke serve at 3-3. On a crucial point, he sprinted wide and fired a brilliant forehand passing shot on the run, despite Rublev playing a nearly flawless rally.

This win marked Alcaraz’s first Grand Slam victory over Rublev and extended his lead to 3-1 in their overall head-to-head record. The Spaniard has now won eight straight matches against Top 20 opponents and holds a 23-9 record against them at Grand Slams.