In the opening round of Wimbledon, Taylor Fritz’s match against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard was halted after four sets due to a local curfew. The match will continue on Tuesday evening, with Mpetshi Perricard initially taking the lead by winning the first two sets with narrow tiebreak scores of 7-6(6) and 7-6(8). However, Fritz fought back to claim the next two sets 6-4 and 7-6(6).
Under the closed roof of No.1 Court, Perricard was close to securing victory in the fourth-set tiebreaker, leading 5-2, but was unable to maintain his advantage. After tying it at 6-all, Fritz rallied, winning the next two points and exclaiming in triumph. However, at approximately 10:15 PM, the players consulted with officials, and a decision was made to suspend play for the night due to time constraints.
The crowd reacted negatively to the announcement, especially since the players had wasted several minutes discussing the situation, despite having nearly 45 minutes left before curfew. A visibly frustrated Fritz expressed his discontent following the call, indicating disbelief that play would not resume that night.
Commentators voiced surprise at the decision to postpone the match, suggesting that the players could have been allowed to finish with the time remaining. Mpetshi Perricard, who delivered an impressive performance with 33 aces, even broke the All England Club record for the fastest serve, clocking in at over 246 km/h.
In contrast, Fritz managed 24 aces and came close to breaking Perricard’s serve. Despite the tension, both players had maintained their service game strong, with no break points against Perricard throughout the contest. As the match had already seen a reversal in momentum, the delay seemed particularly frustrating for Fritz.
Fritz, a seasoned player who reached the quarter-finals in previous tournaments at Wimbledon, found himself in a challenging position against a talented young French player, Mpetshi Perricard, who had previously advanced to the fourth round at the tournament.
Elsewhere, No.3 seed Alexander Zverev’s match against Arthur Rinderknech was also halted late into the night, with both players evenly matched at a set apiece. There were no breaks of serve during their short contest, hinting at the competitive nature of both this year’s tournament and the matches unfolding on the prestigious grass courts.
The re-engagement of these matches at Wimbledon is anticipated with both players eager to progress in the championship.