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Jannik Sinner outdueled Carlos Alcaraz in a matchup of up-and-comers Sunday to reach his first Wimbledon quarterfinal, although he needed six match points to put his opponent away.
Sinner, 20, failed to convert two match points in the third-set tiebreaker but recovered to win 6-1, 6-4, 6-7 (8), 6-3 on Centre Court against the 19-year-old Alcaraz. In terms of combined age, it was the youngest men’s singles matchup in the round of 16 or later at Wimbledon since 1985, when 17-year-old Boris Becker beat Henri Leconte in the quarterfinals.
The 10th-seeded Sinner had three more match points at 5-2 in the fourth, but the No. 5-seeded Alcaraz saved them all before holding serve. Sinner then saved a break point in the next game before finally converting his sixth match point with a forehand winner.
He will face the winner of the match between defending champion Novak Djokovic and unseeded Tim van Rijthoven.
David Goffin, meanwhile reached his second Wimbledon quarterfinal after outlasting Frances Tiafoe in five sets.
The Belgian won 7-6 (3), 5-7, 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 in a tight contest that lasted 4 hours, 36 minutes. Goffin also reached the quarters in his last Wimbledon appearance in 2019, but he missed last year’s tournament with an injury.
Tiafoe called for a physio after winning the third set and was given a pill, then quickly went down 5-1 in the fourth as his first-serve percentage dipped. The No. 23-seeded American held two break points at 5-5 in the fifth set, but Goffin saved them both with powerful serves, then converted his first match point in the next game when Tiafoe netted a backhand.
Goffin will face Cam Norrie, who became the first British man in five years to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals, beating Tommy Paul 6-4, 7-5, 6-4.
He is the first British male quarterfinalist since Andy Murray in 2017.
Norrie reached a career-high ranking of No. 10 this year, but this is the first time he’s been past the third round of a Grand Slam tournament. The 30th-seeded Paul was playing at Wimbledon for the first time and was trying to reach his second Grand Slam quarterfinal.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.