Wimbledon 2025: Carlos Alcaraz Survives Fabio Fognini Scare, Wins Five-set Thriller to Start Title Defence

Tennis world number 2 Carlos Alcaraz entered the Wimbledon 2025 Grand Slam as one of the favourites to win, which made sense given he was the defending champion heading into the grass court major at the All England Club. However, Alcaraz had to survive an almighty test far too early in the campaign as he oversaw a spirited effort from Italian Fabio Fognini in the first round. 

Alcaraz will next face rising British player Oliver Tarvet, but he very nearly did not even make it past the opening round as Fognini fought tooth and nail and gave the young Spaniard a huge fight.

But it was the defending champion who triumphed 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 in a hard-fought match. 

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Fognini's Effort to Be Proud Of

When Alcaraz wrapped up the first set, most thought it would be a formality from there on out as the Spaniard was on a 18-match winning streak and had won two tournaments - the Queens title and the French Open 2025 Grand Slam - prior to Wimbledon. 

However, Fognini fought back hard and when he both forced a tie-breaker and won it, suddenly the match seemed alive once again. 

Alcaraz responded well by claiming the third set but any hopes of him finishing this off in 4 sets was dashed in relatively quick fashion. 

Fognini dug deep and won the second set 6-2, forcing a decider and suddenly looking a threat with momentum on his side. 

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Alcaraz's Stamina Wins Out in The End

But it appeared that even getting to the fifth side was too much for the Italian, who suddenly found himself on the side of a one-sided thrashing in the fifth set. 

He could only win the sole game, as Alcaraz closed down the set and therefore the match without having to break much of a sweat in the final set. 

Alcaraz roared in relief almost as much as anything else when the match was done, perhaps relieved not to be outdone on a day when he was clearly not at his best but did enough to win.