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WIMBLEDON, England — After one set and two games Tuesday afternoon, it looked like Tommy Paul was on his way to becoming the first American man to reach the Wimbledon semifinals since 2018. After a tight opening set on Court 1 against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, Paul brought the crowd to its feet with his heroics. He led 7-5 after 72 minutes.
Paul secured an early break of serve in the second set, creating a buzz in the stands and leaving many wondering if an upset was on the way.
But Alcaraz, as he usually does, raised his game and fought hard. First he won the set, then he won Paul’s confidence and then he won the match. With a strong return performance and 36 winners, Alcaraz emerged victorious 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2. He advanced to the semifinals while Paul was eliminated.
Meanwhile, a few hundred feet away, fellow American Emma Navarro was playing on Centre Court for a place in her first Grand Slam semifinal after a strong run to the quarterfinals. She had convincingly defeated Coco Gauff in straight sets in the fourth round and emerged as the favourite in the unexpected bottom half of the draw.
But Navarro’s hopes were quickly dashed by a lively Jasmine Paolini. The seventh seed, who reached the French Open final last month, took control early on and never let up. She needed just 58 minutes to win 6-2, 6-1. Paolini became the first Italian woman in the Open era to reach the semi-finals at the All England Club, while Navarro became only the second American to record a disappointing result.
But even though their careers ended earlier than either would have liked, the tournament and grass court season can only be considered a success for both Paul and Navarro.
Paul, 27, won his first career grass-court title at Queen’s last month, briefly becoming the top-ranked American after that triumph. It was his best finish at Wimbledon in three appearances and his second Grand Slam quarterfinal. Even in the loss, Paul said he had a lot to learn from the past few weeks.
“I feel like I learned something new every game, and I played a little bit better every game,” Paul said Tuesday. “I was attacking well the whole game. I think the thing I’m most proud of is winning the title at Queen’s a couple of weeks ago. I feel like anytime you can come home with a title, it’s great.”
“Then this week, I mean I’m happy to play four matches and play Carlos here. But obviously I want to win this match and play another big match.”
For the 23-year-old Navarro, it was the latest major result in a season full of tournaments. After reaching the fourth round for the first time at a Grand Slam at the French Open last month, she reached the semifinals in Bad Homburg and then advanced to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Navarro, a former NCAA champion who was ranked 57th at this time last year, is expected to rise to a career-high ranking of 14th next week.
Navarro believes this is just the beginning.
“I played the best tennis of my life in this tournament,” Navarro said after the loss. “It’s exciting to know that I have this level. I know that I will continue to improve. I know that this is not the last time I reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam. I know that I will return.”
Both players still have plenty to look forward to this summer. In addition to the North American hardcourt season, they have been selected to play for Team USA at the Olympics later this month in Paris. Paul, who will be making his second Olympic appearance, is expected to play in singles and doubles (alongside old friend Taylor Fritz) while Navarro will compete in singles.
🚨Alert: 23 shots collected🚨
We cannot ignore this epic between Alcaraz and Paul in today’s play, presented by @Barclays UK pic.twitter.com/cprilrt6CY
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 9, 2024
Only four women and four men are selected to play in singles at the Olympics based on seeding, and Navarro previously said making the team was “something I really wanted to happen” all season.
Before the Olympics, the Americans still have hope at Wimbledon. Fritz, a great Wimbledon player, came back to beat Alexander Zverev in five sets in a controversial fourth-round match on Monday. Fritz will play Lorenzo Muzzetti on Wednesday with a chance to reach his first Grand Slam semifinal.
Fritz, who has won eight consecutive matches on grass after winning the preliminary round in Eastbourne, came close to reaching the last four at Wimbledon in 2022 but was beaten in a fifth-set tiebreak by Rafael Nadal. Fritz said he felt a lot different during that period. In addition to the confidence he gained from winning the Eastbourne title, he said he had to work harder to reach the last eight this time around and was no longer happy with just reaching the quarter-finals.
And no one would cheer Fritz on more than Paul.
“He’s going to play against Muzzetti, I played against him two weeks ago (in the Queen’s final),” Paul said. “We’ll probably talk about that a little bit. Obviously I hope he wins the whole tournament.”
“He’s playing great. I watched the whole match yesterday with Zverev. I’m excited to watch his next match.”
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