Carlos Alcaraz races around the net to help Frances Tiafoe during Wimbledon battle
Carlos Alcaraz came to the aid of his Wimbledon opponent Frances Tiafoe.
Reigning Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz showed his class by running around the net to help Frances Tiafoe to his feet during their SW19 third-round clash.
Alcaraz had set point in the second, having dropped the first 7-5, but his first port of call was to his close friend Tiafoe who had slipped when chasing the ball.
The Spaniard had dropped the ball close to the net, forcing Tiafoe to sprint up from the back of the court only to fall over when returning to Alcaraz, who won the second set by knocking the ball to an empty side of the court with Tiafoe on the floor.
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Knowing that Tiafoe slipped at Queen's and sprained his ACL, there were fears that a similar injury had occurred on Centre Court, although the roof was closed while rain had fallen throughout the day at Wimbledon.
But Alcaraz helped the 26-year-old back to his feet and Tiafoe was able to keep playing, seemingly unharmed, much to the relief of those watching after two epic sets.
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"Kept his concentration well there, Alcaraz," BBC commentator Pete Ogders said as he voiced the point. "Hope Tiafoe is okay. A reminder, he did slip over at Queen’s Club. Sprained his ACL but no sprain there. Wonderful sportsmanship as ever from Alcaraz.
"As I said before, these two, good mates off the court. In truth it was another wonderful point from the Spaniard, getting Tiafoe slipping and sliding all over the place."
Co-commentator Tim Henman then added: "And it looks fairly innocuous, the fall from Tiafoe. But these courts are much, much harder than they look."
Tiafoe slipped again in the fourth-set tiebreaker, down 5-1 to Alcaraz, as his opponent appeared worried as the American struggled to get back to his feet for the second time.
However, he was able to continue playing in an attempt to pull off a major upset.
Despite being close friends off-court, Alcaraz and Tiafoe had some charged words for each other in the build-up to their showdown. Speaking after the American had defeated Borna Coric in straight sets, he expressed how much he was looking forward to facing the defending champion.
To which Alcaraz on Court 1 replied: "He's coming for me? I'm coming for him."
