Carlos Alcaraz dominated Centre Court on Wednesday with a compelling performance, dominating British qualifier Oliver Tarvet 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 to advance to the third round of Wimbledon.
Following his contentious five-setter in the opening round against Fabio Fognini, the Spanish sensation appeared much more composed in his second match, showing his signature explosiveness, imagination, and assurance.
Confronting Tarvet for the first time, Alcaraz dominated the match, breaking the World No. 733 six times and hitting 37 winners in just over two hours. The 21-year-old extended his own record winning sequence to 20 matches and to 31 wins on grass, cementing himself as one of the sport's top players on the surface, as per the ATP.
His triumph over Fognini earlier in the tournament made him the fastest player in the Open Era to notch 30 wins on grass. Now unbeaten in his last 16 matches at the All England Club, Alcaraz is on track to defend his Wimbledon title for a third straight year, following his victories in 2023 and 2024.
Seeded second, Alcaraz is in pursuit of some tennis history. He's trying to join just the second player since Bjorn Borg on winning Roland Garros and Wimbledon in consecutive years. A third consecutive Wimbledon title would also make him one of the sport's legends—only four other men have done that.
Although the outcome was against him, 21-year-old Tarvet impressed on his Grand Slam debut. The student at the University of San Diego progressed through the qualifying stages and recorded a first-round victory over Leandro Riedi. Playing Alcaraz, he delighted home crowds with some Grand Slam-standard passing shots, particularly in the second set, but ultimately found it difficult to match the Spaniard's relentless pace and accuracy.
Alcaraz is now set to play either Felix Auger-Aliassime or Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round. As the current champion and one of the strongest contenders at the tournament, he is well on his way to another deep SW19 run.
