Berrettini survives Fils thriller to set up Wimbledon redemption
Italian outlasts Frenchman in SW19 classic as he confronts ghosts of his own early-career crossroads
Matteo Berrettini ended Arthur Fils’ Wimbledon run with a 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-4 second-round victory at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on Tuesday. The Italian, ranked 14th, needed three sets to dismiss the 20-year-old Frenchman, who entered the match as the youngest quarterfinalist in SW19 history. Fils, serving notice of his rising stock, saved four set points in the opener before Berrettini broke late to force a tiebreak.
He converted his third set point there, then broke immediately in the second to set the tone for a controlled finish. Fils managed just one break point in the entire match—easily neutralized by Berrettini—and finished with six missed break chances across the three sets. The Frenchman’s inability to convert at critical moments kept him from capitalizing on a match that could have tilted in either direction.
