Taylor Fritz has finally banished his quarter-final demons at Wimbledon, defeating Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4) to secure his maiden semi-final berth at SW19.
The 27-year-old American had previously stumbled in heartbreaking five-set losses to Rafael Nadal (2022) and Lorenzo Musetti (2024) on the same stage. This time, resilience triumphed.
Fritz breezed through the first two sets but faltered in the third, losing five straight games as Khachanov forced a fourth. Battling foot tape issues and a momentum swing, Fritz dug deep, regrouped, and clinched the tiebreak to seal the two-hour, 36-minute victory.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Fritz said post-match. “I don’t think I could’ve taken another quarter-final loss.”
The win marks Fritz’s second career Grand Slam semi-final, the first being at the 2024 US Open. With 13 grass-court victories this season, including titles in Stuttgart and Eastbourne, he leads the ATP Tour in grass wins and has surged to No. 7 in the Live Race to Turin.
