LONDON, UK — Former TCU Horned Frog Jacob Fearnley held his own on Centre Court at Wimbledon against the world's best on the Fourth of July.
Fearnley squared off with Novak Djokovic, a seven-time champion at the All England Club, and fell in four sets (6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5). Djokovic said he wouldn't have been surprised if his second-round match against Fearnley went to a fifth set, but he's "very glad it didn’t.”
“Can I be playing better and moving better? Yes, absolutely,” Djokovic said in an on-court interview. “So I’m hoping that as the tournament progresses each day or each match I’ll be feeling a bit better.”
Fearnley, a wild-card entry who recently finished playing college tennis at TCU, had a strong cheering section that erupted when he took the third set.
“He served very well, it was very difficult to break his serve. He made me work, definitely,” Djokovic said.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion said he should have closed it out in straight sets, but that he "was not really comfortable in my own skin, particularly in the third and fourth.
“Sometimes you have rough days where maybe you are not feeling your best," he added, "and of course it also depends on the opponent across the net. He made me earn this victory.”
At TCU, Fearnley was a four-time ITA All-American (2024, singles / 2023, singles and doubles / 2022, doubles) and four-time All-Big 12 first team honoree (2024, singles / 2023, singles and doubles / 2022, doubles). He also made the 2024 NCAA Championships All-Tournament Team (No. 1 doubles).
In 2024, TCU Tennis won its first NCAA tennis national championship with Fearnley on the team, defeating Texas in the NCAA men's tennis championship match, 4-3.
TCU's Athletic Director, Jeremiah Donati, showed his support for Fearnley on X after the match.
"What an incredible performance from @jakefearnley01 on Centre Court @Wimbledon vs Djokovic. 👏 👏 👏 His future is so bright," Donati said.
Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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