Rune into Wimbledon quarters and 'not afraid' to face Alcaraz

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Rune into Wimbledon quarters and 'not afraid' to face Alcaraz

Denmark's Holger Rune celebrates winning against Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov
Denmark's Holger Rune celebrates winning against Bulgaria's Grigor DimitrovAFP
Holger Rune on Monday became the first Danish man in 65 years to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals and insisted he is "not afraid" to face anybody, even world number one Carlos Alcaraz.

World number six Rune came back from a set and a break down to defeat Grigor Dimitrov 3-6, 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/4), 6-3.

He will tackle Alcaraz in the last eight if the top seed gets past former finalist Matteo Berrettini in his fourth-round clash.

"They are both great players, but I am not afraid. I am excited," said Rune, who was supported on Court One by Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik.

Rune, already a two-time quarter-finalist at the French Open, had been just two points from defeat in the previous round before seeing off Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in five sets.

On Monday, Dimitrov, the 24th-ranked Bulgarian who made the semi-finals in 2014, pocketed the first set after carving out a key break in the eighth game.

Denmark's Holger Rune (R) shakes hands after winning against Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov
Denmark's Holger Rune (R) shakes hands after winning against Bulgaria's Grigor DimitrovAFP

The veteran was a break ahead early in the second set, which 20-year-old Rune retrieved in the eighth game.

He levelled the match in the tiebreak.

After securing the third set, also on a tiebreak, Rune broke for 4-2 in the fourth courtesy of back-to-back double faults by Dimitrov.

Rune wrapped up the match, becoming the first Dane since Kurt Nielsen in 1958 to make the quarter-finals when Dimitrov pushed a weary backhand wide.

"Grigor is an amazing player, he pushed me to the limit," said Rune after a performance in which he fired 11 aces and 46 winners in total.

"It was a crazy match, tough and long. But I always fight to the end.

"I kept telling myself that Wimbledon is only once a year and that I have to fight to have any chance of winning."

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