Wimbledon: Deja vu for Humbert as Bergs wins again after Eastbourne final; reaches second round

London, June 30 (IANS) For the second time in a little over 48 hours, Zizou Bergs repelled the challenge of Ugo Humbert, this time in the first round of men’s singles at Wimbledon at the All-England Club, reliving his victory in the Eastbourne final on Sunday.

Bergs got off to a flying start against the No.27 seed, and then, as Humbert fought back, he held firm to win 6-2, 7-5, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3 on Court 17 on Tuesday. The Belgian had beaten Humbert on Sunday after dropping the opening set in the Eastbourne final.

This win is all the more remarkable as Bergs, the world No.37, had started his campaign in Eastbourne on the back of a six-match, tour-level losing streak that stretched back to mid-April.

With that title in his bag, he is now on a six-match winning streak, and he would be hoping to extend it when he plays Jaime Faria, the world No.98 qualifier from Portugal.

In another first-round match on Tuesday, Otto Virtanen dug deep to register the biggest shock of 2026 Wimbledon so far on Tuesday afternoon, when he saved a match point to stun fourth seed Ben Shelton in a five-set first-round thriller.

The No. 140 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Virtanen prevailed 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(8), 6-2, 7-6(11-9) in a four-hour, 21-minute battle on No. 2 Court. The Finn saved the match point at 8/9 in the 10-point deciding tie-break, before converting his first after Shelton fired a forehand wide.

The win against World No. 5 Shelton was the biggest of Virtanen’s career by PIF ATP Ranking: He had not previously defeated a Top-20 opponent. A former World No. 91, Virtanen came through qualifying in Roehampton last week to secure his second appearance in the Wimbledon main draw.

Awaiting the 25-year-old Virtanen in the second round at the All England Club will be World No. 114 Arthur Fery. The home favourite earlier downed Damir Dzumhur 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-1.

In contrast, Shelton’s fellow Top-10 American Taylor Fritz enjoyed a straightforward opening victory at SW19. The sixth seed, who had been due to face Jack Draper in the first round before the Briton withdrew, eased past lucky loser Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 on No. 1 Court.

–IANS

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