Jan-Lennard Struff offered the young star a match at eye level, but it wasn’t enough to defeat Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in Wimbledon. The longtime Davis Cup player from Warstein lost to the 19-year-old newcomer after 4:10 hours 6:4, 5:7, 6:4, 6:7 (3:7), 4:6.
While it was pouring rain outside, Struff showed one of his best performances this year under the closed roof on Court 1. He broke a toe in March and only returned to the tour for the grass season.
Alcaraz, who was the favorite at the French Open after four titles this year and was only stopped in the quarter-finals by Olympic champion Alexander Zverev, had a hard time. He lacks experience, the appearance against Struff was only his third match on grass.
Struff has slipped in the tennis world rankings
The 32-year-old German, on the other hand, was already playing a ninth Wimbledon, but he narrowly missed out on victory. Struff, who is only 155th in the world rankings, has been waiting for a Grand Slam success for more than a year.
His last win at the four most important tennis tournaments in the world came in 2021 at the French Open in Paris: against Carlos Alcaraz.