There was joy and sadness for the Aussie tennis contingent at Wimbledon on Wednesday night.
Jordan Thompson continued his improbable run at Wimbledon on Wednesday night, battling back to win another five-set epic while defying injury. But it was heartbreak for adopted Aussie Katie Boulter, who lost to lucky loser Solana Sierra in another disappointing grand slam result.
Thompson admitted before Wimbledon he’d be lucky to make it onto court, and would probably have to take the rest of the year off to get his body right. But the Aussie has surged into the third round after two five-setters, beating Benjamin Bonzi 7-5 6-7 (2-7) 4-6 6-2 6-4 in just shy of four hours on Wednesday
Playing with pain-killers and sporting a large brace on his back in between matches, Thompson has somehow managed to win twice to continue his charge. After Bonzi hit his final return into the net, Thompson let out a primal scream and pointed to his heart.
After his first-round win over Vit Kopriva – when he came from two sets down – Thompson looked shattered and wondered if he would even be able to start Wednesday’s match. But he made it into court 15 to face the man who had shocked last year’s semi-finalist Daniil Medvedev in the first round.
Thompson is a better player than the 29-year-old Frenchman who has never been inside the top 40, and he showed that from the start. But Bonzi turned the tide and won the second and third sets, making Thompson change his gameplan
