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Important SN update for SouthlandWorld No. 3 tumbles out of Wimbledon as Sinner advances
Glenn Moore, AAP • July 2nd, 2025 8:06 am
Alexander Zverev has crashed out of Wimbledon in the opening round, beaten by Arthur Rinderknech | Photo: AP
Alexander Zverev's unhappy relationship with grass courts has continued with the No. 3 seed crashing out of Wimbledon in the opening round.
Zverev, who has never won a title on grass, nor gone beyond the last 16 at Wimbledon, lost 7-6 (7-3), 6-7 (8-10), 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 to Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech in a match suspended late on Monday night and resumed at one-set all.
Rinderknech, 72 in the world, had only previously won one match at Wimbledon in four visits, but sealed victory with his third match point.
Across the two days, the match lasted four hours 40 minutes and at its conclusion Rinderknech fell to his knees in joy.
France's Arthur Rinderknech has stunned third seed Alexander Zverev at Wimbledon | Photo: AP
Earlier world No. 1 Jannik Sinner had cruised past fellow Italian Luca Nardi 6-4, 6-3, 6-0.
"I am very happy to come back here, it's a special place for me and playing against an Italian is very unfortunate for us but one has to go through so I'm happy that it's me," he said as the fans warmly saluted his victory.
Sinner's three grand slam successes have come on hardcourts in Australia and the US, while he has only once reached the semi-finals at the All England Club.
Jannik Sinner uses an ice towel to keep cool during his first round Wimbledon romp | Photo: AP
Yet even against Nardi's limited resistance, he showed he has the tools, the booming serve and walloping flat forehand, to thrive on Wimbledon's lawns.
It was his third match since his gruelling Roland Garros final loss against Carlos Alcaraz, and his fourth will be against Australian Aleksandar Vukic in the second round.
The man who beat Sinner in the Halle grasscourt warm-up, 28th-seed Alexander Bublik, had his Wimbledon challenge unexpectedly curtailed by Spaniard Jaume Munar 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2.
Bublik, who went on to win the Halle title, was serving for the match at 5-4 before Munar clawed back to make it two sets apiece via the tiebreak.
Munar capitalised from there with an early break in the decider.
Last year's semi-finalist Lorenzo Musetti also made an unexpected exit, beaten by Georgian qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili.
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Seventh seed Musetti, playing his first match since retiring in the French Open semi-final against Carlos Alcaraz with a leg injury, never looked settled against the world No. 126 and went down 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1.
"Really bad day at the office, I came here at the last minute and of course I didn't have much good feelings with my game and honestly the physical side and energy and whatever it takes to play a match like this," he said.
It was 33-year-old Basilashvili's first win in a Grand Slam since reaching the Wimbledon third round in 2022.
American fifth seed Taylor Fritz defeated France's Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-7 (6-8), 6-7 (8-10), 6-4, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4 in a match suspended on Monday evening with the pair level at two sets each.
Fritz faced the fastest in Wimbledon history, 153 mph (246.3 kph), but won the point.
"The funny thing is, I always tell my coaches when they sometimes say maybe I should try to serve into the body ... that I think body serves are awful. I never win the point when I do it," Fritz said.
"And I sent the video (of the 153 mph serve) to my coach, saying: 'There you go. He served the fastest serve in the history of Wimbledon right into my chest, and I won the point, so there's your proof: Body serves are bad."
