LONDON: Not many players can boast victories over Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner but British rookie Jacob Fearnley has notched up that impressive double and now looks for a third in the shape of Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon.

Fearnley’s wins over reigning Wimbledon champion Alcaraz and world No. 1 Sinner came in his junior days.

Since then, their career paths have taken radically different directions — Alcaraz and Sinner are winning Grand Slams and banking millions of dollars while Fearnley headed to university in the US.

“I played Alcaraz when he was maybe 14, I was 17. Sinner, I played him maybe when we were 15,” said 22-year-old Fearnley on Tuesday.

“Obviously the strides they’ve taken in their games have been a lot more than myself. The way they’re playing, it’s unbelievable.

“I don’t think I can really take anything from those victories.”

Fearnley won his first Grand Slam match on debut on Tuesday; it was also his first win of any kind on the main tour.

Before seeing off Spain’s Alejandro Moro Canas 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (14/12), his only professional match on the ATP tour came in Eastbourne last week where he was a first-round loser.

The week before, however, he illustrated his prowess on grass courts by coming out of qualifying to win a second-tier Challenger event in Nottingham.

“It’s a bit crazy,” said Fearnley, the world No. 277.

He was referring to a month which also saw him help Texas Christian University win the national championships in the US at the end of his five-year college career.

Fearnley has already faced one Wimbledon giant in his time — at the 2018 tournament, he was drafted in as a hitting partner for Roger Federer.

“That was really cool. He’s a super nice guy. Obviously a really, really special player. I learned a lot of things from those brief practice sessions,” he said.

Now he faces comfortably one of the most daunting tasks in the sport — trying to defeat seven-time Wimbledon champion Djokovic in the second round on Thursday.

“I have no idea,” said Fearnley when asked how he planned to author a seismic victory over a man who has won 24 Grand Slam titles.

“I’ve watched so many videos of him. It doesn’t look like there’s many flaws in his game. I’m going to just try and enjoy it, put my game out on the court and see what happens.”

Djokovic admitted he knows absolutely nothing about Fearnley.

“I haven’t seen him hit. So I’ll have to do my homework,” said the Serb.

Earlier Tuesday, Djokovic started his bid to capture a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon men’s title with a straight-sets win over Czech qualifier Vit Kopriva in his first match since undergoing knee surgery.

Djokovic eased to a 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 victory in a shade under two hours on Center Court against his 123rd-ranked rival.

The 37-year-old did not face a break point in the entire match, which he sealed with three aces.

Djokovic, chasing a record 25th Grand Slam title, wore a grey support on his right knee after undergoing surgery on a torn meniscus, which had forced him to withdraw from the French Open after the fourth round last month.

“It was very good. I was very pleased with the way I moved on the court today,” said Djokovic after taking his Wimbledon first-round record to 19-0.

“Obviously coming into Wimbledon this year, it was a little bit of a different circumstance for me because of the knee.

“I didn’t know how everything was going to unfold on the court really.

“Practice sessions are quite different to official match play, so I’m just extremely glad about the way I played and the way I felt today.”

Djokovic added that his grey knee support had passed the All England Club’s stringent rules over all-white playing gear.

“Of course, we did check in the days prior if we have a permission. We’re trying to find a white one, trust me,” he explained.

LEIPZIG, Germany: Merih Demiral was Turkiye’s unlikely hero with both goals in a 2-1 win over Austria on Tuesday that booked their place in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals.
The Al-Ahli center-back smashed home after just 58 seconds and produced a towering header on the hour mark to double Turkiye’s lead.
Michael Gregoritsch quickly pulled a goal back for Austria and only a stunning save from Mert Gunok denied Christoph Baumgartner a dramatic equalizer deep into stoppage-time.
Turkiye advance to face the Netherlands in the last eight in Berlin on Saturday.
Austria had emerged as dark horses to go far on the perceived weaker side of the draw after topping a group including France and the Netherlands.
Ralf Rangnick’s side had also thrashed Turkiye 6-1 in a friendly in March, but this time they failed to recover from a nightmare start.
Real Madrid’s Arda Guler was a constant threat to the Austrian defense and his teasing delivery from a corner caused chaos inside the first minute.
Baumgartner’s clearance off the line hit team-mate Stefan Posch, goalkeeper Patrick Pentz clawing it out to Demiral, who lashed into the roof of the net for the second fastest goal ever at a European Championship.
Turkiye’s raucous fans exploded in a deafening celebration, but they were nearly brought back down to earth straight away.
Baumgartner fired inches wide form the edge of the box before Demiral somehow prevented the RB Leipzig midfielder from scoring at his home ground as a dangerous Austrian corner flashed across goal.
Turkiye coach Vincenzo Montella said that absent captain Hakan Calhanoglu, who was missing due to suspension, was “irreplaceable.”
However, Guler assumed responsibility in the playmaking role and nearly produced a stunning second for his side with an audacious attempt from the halfway line that drifted wide.
Only Portugal, Spain and the Netherlands have had a higher winning percentage in European football since Rangnick took charge of Austria two years ago.
The former Manchester United boss made two changes at half-time, including the introduction of Gregoritsch, who scored a hat-trick when the sides met three months ago.
Rangnick got the reaction he desired as Austria began cutting through the Turkish defense.
Gunok spread himself brilliantly to deny Marko Arnautovic when one-on-one before Bayern Munich’s Konrad Laimer lacked the finish to a fine run through the middle.
However, they failed to learn their lesson from Guler corners as another inviting delivery was powered home by Demiral.
In doing so the 26-year-old became the first European defender to score twice in the knockout stages of a major tournament since Lillian Thuram for France at the 1998 World Cup.
It was also a set-piece at the other end that got Austria back in the game seven minutes later.
Posch flicked on Marcel Sabitzer’s corner for Gregoritsch to sweep high into the net.
A torrential downpour could not drown out a sensational atmosphere in Leipzig, with Turkiye’s huge expat population in Germany again making it like a home game for Montella’s men.
The fervent atmosphere turned sour as Sabitzer was struck by an object thrown from the crowd as he prepared to take a corner.
Baris Alper Yilmaz was denied a third for Turkiye by a fine save from Pentz in stoppage-time.
That nearly proved crucial as Gunok then had to produce a remarkable stop to prevent Baumgartner’s downward header finding the far corner.
It was an incredible save reminiscent of England keeper Gordon Banks’ iconic stop from Pele in the 1970 World Cup.
But Turkiye stood firm amid an aerial bombardment from Austria to reach the quarter-finals of a major tournament for the first time since Euro 2008.