Carlos Alcaraz hailed by Wilander after hard-fought third round win over Nicolas Jarry: ‘He wants it badly’

Carlos Alcaraz’ fighting qualities have been praised after he came through a tough Wimbledon third round clash with Nicolas Jarry.

The world No. 1 needed nearly four hours to overcome his Chilean opponent in four sets in a far from straightforward affair.

“It could have gone the distance and he probably knew that this was going to happen because of the way Nicolas Jarry serves,” said Wilander. “He’s got a very consistent serve, some of it because he’s so tall but he’s got a very consistent motion. He can hit the spots, he can hit that wide serve that’s kind of unusual.

“To me, it’s the problem-solving skills that were on display today, and we kind of knew Carlos Alcaraz has that.

“We talk so much about his ‘up side’ and we haven’t really seen him fight these matches out because he’s so young, and he did it today, maybe not playing his best.

“To me this a sign that we have a great champion in Carlos Alcaraz. He’s going to be around because he wants it badly.”

Alcaraz moves into the fourth round where he was beaten by Jannik Sinner 12 months ago in his debut Wimbledon campaign.

The 20-year-old bounced back to win the US Open, propel himself to the top of the ATP rankings, and now has his eye on a second Grand Slam title at SW19.

After beating 25th seed Jarry, Laura Robson also praised Alcaraz for finding a way to win in difficult circumstances and also hinted at a bright future for his opponent.

“I don’t think the organisers were looking for a fifth set there because you can see how much the guys were tearing up the baseline at the back,” she said. “Four hours of proper all-court tennis, Jarry coming forward, Alcaraz mixing things up.

“I thought it wasn’t the best match in terms of level but it was an interesting match. It was so fun to watch those guys try and figure each other out and for Jarry, I think he’s got a huge up side over the next couple of months on a slower, higher bouncing hard court, he’s going to be lethal.

“But for Carlos, what a thrill to come through that one.”

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