The first-round Wimbledon match between fifth-seeded American Taylor Fritz and France's Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard was suspended on Monday night and will resume in a decisive fifth set. The contest was halted due to the All England Club's 11 p.m. curfew.
The match, played under the closed roof of No. 1 Court with artificial lights, saw Mpetshi Perricard, ranked No. 36 in the world, initially gain a significant advantage. He even came within two points of securing the match while leading 5-2 in the fourth-set tiebreaker. However, Fritz, the 2024 U.S. Open runner-up, mounted a comeback, winning four consecutive points to clinch the tiebreaker 8-6 and force a fifth set.
As the clock ticked past 10:15 p.m., the players and officials conferred at the net before the chair umpire announced the suspension of play. Fritz visibly expressed his displeasure with the decision, gesturing towards his guest box and saying, "I couldn't do anything. I tried".
The match was a captivating battle between two strong servers. Mpetshi Perricard, 21, made history earlier in the match by unleashing a 153 mph serve, the fastest ever recorded at Wimbledon. This surpassed the previous record of 148 mph set by Taylor Dent in 2010. He totaled 33 aces before the suspension, while Fritz contributed 24. Despite Mpetshi Perricard's powerful serving, he was unable to earn a single break point throughout the four sets. Fritz, on the other hand, had five break point opportunities, converting one.
Fritz, 27, has a strong track record at Wimbledon, reaching the quarter-finals in both 2022 and 2023. In 2022, he lost to Rafael Nadal, and in 2023, he was defeated by Lorenzo Musetti. Mpetshi Perricard reached the fourth round at Wimbledon last year, also losing to Musetti. This is the first head-to-head meeting between Fritz and Mpetshi Perricard.
The winner of this match will advance further in the tournament. Detailed statistics of the match are available, including winning odds and a power graph illustrating each player's dominance. The resumption of the match is highly anticipated.
