Rivalries of 2025: Alcaraz vs. Fritz
To mark the end of another thrilling season, ATPTour.com is unveiling our annual ‘Best Of’ series, which will reflect on the most intriguing rivalries, matches, comebacks, upsets and more. This week, we are looking at the best rivalries of the year.
Four Lexus ATP Head2Head clashes across 2025 cemented a budding rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz. Having met just twice before this season, the duo this year battled at some of tennis’ biggest tournaments in captivating showdowns, from the Wimbledon semi-finals to the Nitto ATP Finals.
ATPTour.com recaps the four tour-level tussles between Alcaraz and Fritz this season.
Wimbledon SFs, Alcaraz d. Fritz 6-4, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(6)
The tension in Alcaraz and Fritz’s Wimbledon semi-final showdown reached its breaking point at the match’s climax. The Spaniard teetered on the brink of being forced to contest a fifth set when facing two set points at 4/6 in the fourth-set tie-break, but he rattled off four consecutive points to secure his spot in a third consecutive final at SW19.
Alcaraz was riding a 24-match winning streak heading into the match, while Fritz was fresh off nine straight victories, including a title run in Eastbourne across a standout grass-court season. The American was unable to extend that run on the All England Club’s Centre Court, however, as his wait for a maiden tour-level victory against Alcaraz went on.
The Spaniard dictated play from the baseline, peppering in precise drop shots and wielding a hefty second serve that kept Fritz constantly on the back foot. Alcaraz increased his level when it mattered most and pulled no punches in tight moments, such as when he surged forward to the net while Fritz threatened with his first set point in the fourth set. On his second set point at 6/5, the American was left to rue an inside-out forehand error.
<img alt=”Carlos Alcaraz” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2025/07/11/15/53/alcaraz-wimbledon-2025-friday2.jpg” />
Credit: Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images.
Laver Cup, Fritz d. Alcaraz 6-3, 6-2
Fritz finally cracked the code against Alcaraz, claiming his first Lexus ATP Head2Head win against the Spaniard in four attempts, with a comfortable victory for Team World at September’s Laver Cup in San Francisco.
The American was fearless in his approach, dictating baseline play at every turn and applying relentless pressure on Team Europe’s Alcaraz by converting 16 of his 20 net points. In the second set, Fritz pulled away by winning the final four games to seal a memorable victory. A pivotal moment came in the opening game of the match, when Fritz fended off the only two break points he faced for the entire match, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
“The three times I had played Carlos, he had broken me in the first game every time,” said Fritz. “Getting out of that first game was huge. I just made sure I didn’t second guess myself.”
[ATP AWARDS]Tokyo Final, Alcaraz d. Fritz 6-4, 6-4
Just nine days after their clash in San Francisco, Alcaraz and Fritz stood across the net again, this time at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo, where the World No. 1 exacted his revenge.
Alcaraz stamped his authority with trademark firepower and shotmaking in the title match at the hard-court ATP 500. He overwhelmed Fritz from all corners of the court and rarely let up in a 93-minute victory. Fritz took a medical timeout at the end of the first set to receive treatment on his left thigh, which was later strapped after three games of the second. Struggling to move efficiently, the American saw his chances of reclaiming the Tokyo crown, which he won in 2022, slip away.
“I’m really happy with the level that I played, with everything,” said Alcaraz, who rebounded from a left ankle injury scare in his first-round match to lift the trophy on Tokyo debut. “Starting the week not good with the ankle, and the way that I came back from that, I’m just really happy about it.”
Nitto ATP Finals Round Robin, Alcaraz d. Fritz 6-7(2), 7-5, 6-3
The two rivals saved arguably their best match of the season for last and the Nitto ATP Finals. A confident, heavy-hitting Fritz carried the momentum for much of the first 90 minutes and held two consecutive break points at 2-2 in the second set, having already taken a one-set lead. Then, the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings Alcaraz turned the tables in Turin.
The most pivotal moment came with Fritz holding his first break point of the second set. He had the upper hand in a thrilling 19-shot rally, but Alcaraz moved forward — similar to his tactic when down set point against Fritz in the Wimbledon semi-finals — to put away a backhand volley. Fritz had a chance for an overhead during that rally, but he elected to let the ball bounce, a decision he later admitted, “I probably should have sent it out of the air.” Alcaraz eventually held after 14 minutes, deflating Fritz’s chances of an upset.
Throughout the high quality tug-of-war match, Alcaraz and Fritz battled for baseline position, each taking risks on return and searching for their first opportunity to play offence. But in the end, Alcaraz went into lockdown mode with a squeaky-clean third-set performance to survive.
“I was really relieved after the win because of everything I went through during the match,” said Alcaraz. “I wasn’t feeling the ball as well as I was in the first [match], but I’m really happy that I found a way to come back.”