Taylor Fritz’s class on the grass gives him a genuine shot against Alcaraz

Taylor Fritz has spent much of his decade-long professional career just outside the tennis elite: close enough to peer in, but not quite break through. That may be about to change. On Friday, the 27-year-old American will face Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon semi-finals, his biggest match on grass to date and a chance to take down the two-time defending champion.

It promises an attractive clash of styles: Fritz, the power-serving baseliner ranked No 5 in the world, who has sent down 95 aces, the second-most in the tournament. Alcaraz, the all-court magician from Spain riding a 23-match win streak (including 19 in a row at the All England Club), has returned superbly all fortnight, winning 31% of his return games and landing 71% of returns in play. But if tennis were that simple and form and numbers alone determined outcomes, Centre Court wouldn’t offer up the theatre it so consistently does.

The third career meeting between Fritz and Alcaraz – the Spaniard has won the previous two – will hinge on more than serve speeds or spin rates. Both men have grown into the tournament mentally as much as physically. Alcaraz began with a shaky serve but rediscovered his rhythm in the fourth round against Andrey Rublev. Fritz, who twice survived elimination during a pair of late-night five-setters on No 1 Court in the opening two rounds, has quietly found his best level just as the stakes have risen.

The laconic Californian has never looked better than he did in the opening two sets of Tuesday’s quarter-final win over Karen Khachanov. He eventually needed a fourth-set tie-break to finish the job, but the resilience he showed, in losing the momentum and then reclaiming it, is what separates this version of Fritz from past ones. “I’m proud of how I mentally got through these matches,” he said. “I knew my draw was absolutely brutal … I’m just happy with how I’ve handled that and stayed in the moment.”

View image in fullscreen Taylor Fritz plays a shot during his victory over Karen Khachanov. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

Fritz has now reached the last four at Wimbledon for the first time and second time overall at a major, having made the US Open final last September. But the grass might be his true calling. Five of his 10 career titles have come on the surface, including two in the past month in Stuttgart and Eastbourne.

For years, Fritz has hovered on the edge of something bigger: flashes of brilliance undone by untimely lapses or tricky draws. That included a pair of crushing five-set defeats in Wimbledon quarter-finals: to Rafael Nadal in 2022 and Lorenzo Musetti last year. This fortnight, he appears to have grown into the player he always hinted at becoming. “Other years that I was in the quarter-finals here, it felt like a really big deal for me,” he said on Tuesday after his latest last-eight tie. “Going into the match today, I was much more calm and relaxed. I think right now I’m playing at a much higher level than I was even two years ago.”

There’s been help along the way. Fritz credits his girlfriend, influencer Morgan Riddle, for bringing stability to his career and focus to his off-court life. “There’s an obvious correlation between my results and ranking and the time we’ve been together,” he said. “Having someone who cares and just pushes you to do better, to be healthier … almost like kind of just mother me in a way, with like, the diet and going to sleep on time …”

He laughed. “Yeah, that maybe wasn’t the best choice of words.”

View image in fullscreen Taylor Fritz during the US Open final in 2024. Photograph: Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Still, it’s working. Fritz’s serve has sharpened with each round, as crisp as the white kit he wears. A well-documented foot issue – really just a taping-related irritation, not an injury – hasn’t slowed him down. And with the self-belief that grass gives him, a real shot against Alcaraz is genuine. “It can be an equalizer,” he said. “So I trust in how I’m playing. I truly know the way that I played the first two sets today [against Khachanov], there’s not much any opponent on the other side can do.”

Alcaraz, of course, is not just any opponent. The 22-year-old from Spain’s southeastern coast is aiming to win a third consecutive Wimbledon title. After winning at Roland Garros last month, he arrived in London short on grass-court matches but long on confidence. His serve was shaky at first – he cited his ball toss as the problem – but by the fourth round it was humming again. That, in turn, has unlocked the rest of his game.

“Feeling great in the serve gave me a lot of calm,” Alcaraz said after beating Cameron Norrie on Tuesday. “Then I’m playing great tennis from the baseline.”

If Fritz prides himself on his mental growth, Alcaraz’s mindset is built around joy. “Once I started to enjoy the match, enjoy the moment, I think my good level showed up,” he said. “Playing a quarter-final at Wimbledon is a gift.”

View image in fullscreen Taylor Fritz on the stretch during his win over Karen Khachanov. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

Indeed Friday’s semi-final will be a test of contrasts. Fritz is methodical, restrained, phlegmatic. Alcaraz is jubilant, playful, irrepressible. One slouches toward greatness; the other dances freely with it. But both know what’s at stake. And both are capable of tipping the match on a moment’s notice. The stats indicate that Alcaraz is the better returner and the more complete player. They say Fritz is serving bigger, with less margin for error. But tennis, especially on grass, is won or lost in the space between the numbers: a half-step here, a hesitation there. One player holding his nerve while the other blinks. Closing that gap could prove Fritz’s final hurdle to joining the sport’s top tier once and for all.

“It gives me a lot of confidence that I’ve been here before,” Fritz said, recalling the pressure of playing Frances Tiafoe for a spot in the US Open final. “I don’t think anything’s going to get more stressful than that.”

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