Alejandro Davidovich out of Wimbledon despite battling display in thriller

Alejandro Davidovich's Wimbledon campaign came to an end in the fourth round on Sunday after the Malaga-born player was beaten in five sets by Felix Auger-Aliassime in a contest lasting four and a half hours.

Davidovich produced one of the finest displays of his career but was unable to overcome the Canadian's formidable serving. The fourth seed and tournament third favourite eventually weathered Davidovich's inspired comeback to progress 7-6 (4), 6-7 (6), 4-6, 7-6 (2), 1-6.

The defeat means Davidovic was unable to equal his best Grand Slam result, reaching the quarter-finals at the French Open in 2021, while Spain's interest in the singles draw at Wimbledon also came to an end.

The match remained without a single break of serve until the 34th game, underlining the quality of both players on serve. Auger-Aliassime finished with 27 aces and consistently denied Davidovich opportunities, with the Spaniard converting only one of his seven break-point chances.

Davidovich arrived at the All England Club in excellent form after winning the Mallorca Championships, the first ATP title of his career, and carrying a seven-match winning streak. He continued that momentum by taking the opening set in a tie-break after saving a set point with an ace at 5-6.

The second set followed a similar pattern. Davidovich earned three set points on the Auger-Aliassime serve but could not convert any of them before the Canadian levelled the match in another tie-break.

The decisive first break finally arrived in the third set, allowing Auger-Aliassime to move ahead.

That said, the Malaga player refused to give in. After saving two match points, he eventually broke his opponent's serve for the first time before dominating the fourth-set tie-break to force a deciding set.

During that dramatic finish, he also suffered a second injury to his left ankle, requiring treatment before play resumed.

The physical problem proved decisive. Davidovich quickly fell 3-0 behind in the fifth set and, despite his efforts, was unable to recover as Auger-Aliassime sealed victory on his seventh match point to reach the quarter-finals, where he will face Novak Djokovic.