Taylor Fritz’s Wimbledon quarterfinal ended the moment his right knee started acting up. The sixth-seeded American said the pain hit just three games into his match against Alexander Zverev, leaving him unable to settle into the contest.
Fritz was the last American man left in the singles draw, but the knee issue quickly became the defining factor on No. 1 Court. Zverev won 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday, using his serve to control the match and extend his recent edge over Fritz.
Early discomfort turned into a bigger problem
Fritz said he had no warning that the tendinitis would flare again at Wimbledon. He had felt a little pain near the end of his fourth-round win over Alexander Bublik, but expected a light day off to leave him fine for the quarterfinal.
“I expected, after a light day yesterday, to feel fine today,” Fritz said. “Felt like my warmup was great. Then, yeah, I have no answers as to why three games in it was like that.”
He also said the sudden discomfort left him rattled. “I was just, like, panicking, ‘What am I going to do?’” Fritz said. “I just didn’t expect it at all.”
Zverev keeps control and ends the streak
Fritz took a medical timeout during the second set for treatment on his right knee, but the intervention did not change the momentum. Zverev ended a seven-match losing streak against the American and said he felt he played “a fantastic match.”
“He’s beaten me for two years straight,” Zverev said. “I played a fantastic match.”
The French Open champion also leaned on his serve throughout the match, which made life difficult for Fritz even before the knee issue became unavoidable. Fritz earned four break points but could not convert any of them.
| Match Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Winner | Alexander Zverev |
| Score | 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 |
| Venue | No. 1 Court |
| Fritz’s issue | Right knee tendinitis flare-up |
| Break points for Fritz | 4, none converted |
Fritz said the outcome might not have changed even without the injury, because Zverev was serving at a high level. He said the knee trouble mainly kept him from focusing fully on the match.
“He’s going to be extremely tough to beat the way he’s serving,” Fritz said. “I don’t want to take away from how well he’s playing. … I’m just really sad that I didn’t get the chance to, like, get into it, I guess. I felt like just because I was thinking about the knee, my focus was kind of all over the place.”
The result closed Fritz’s Wimbledon run after he had reached the 2024 US Open final and beaten Zverev in that tournament’s quarterfinals. For Zverev, the win served as a clear response in a rivalry that has swung back and forth over the past two seasons.