Wimbledon Day 4: Zverev clicks into gear, Berrettini’s fairytale run continues

Alexander Zverev beat Valentin Royer 6-1,6-3,7-6(3) in the second round of Wimbledon, while Frances Tiafoe rode his Halle momentum past Jan Choinski, and Matteo Berrettini continued his remarkable Wimbledon run by beating 20th seed Arthur Fils on Day 4, while Grigor Dimitrov ended Jakub Menšík’s promising campaign in four competitive sets.

Thursday at Wimbledon belonged to the top of the draw — the seeds doing what they were supposed to do, the upsets failing to materialise, and the draw settling into a shape that finally begins to reveal its true contenders. It was a day of efficiency more than drama. Of momentum building rather than crises averted. With one notable exception: a 30-year-old Italian, five years removed from his finest hour at the All England Club, quietly announcing to anyone still paying attention that his Wimbledon story is far from finished.

London, England: Day 4 of the 2026 Championships was, by the tournament’s own extravagant standards, a measured afternoon — the seeds advancing cleanly, the draw thinning as it should, and only a handful of competitive sets to remind the crowd that the third round will bring sharper tests. Second seed Alexander Zverev was the day’s marquee name on No. 1 Court, while Frances Tiafoe rode the momentum of his Halle title into the third round and Grigor Dimitrov ended Jakub Menšík’s run with a performance of genuine grass-court class. But the day’s most compelling story belonged to Matteo Berrettini, still standing, still swinging, and still very much a threat on this surface.

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Zverev: Sharper, Cleaner, More Dangerous

The Roland Garros champion arrived on No. 1 Court against Valentin Royer having left questions unanswered in his first-round slog against Alexander Blockx. Thursday provided some answers. Zverev dispatched the French qualifier 6-1, 6-3, 7-6 in a performance markedly improved from his Day 2 outing — his first serve landing at 74 per cent in the opening two sets, his forehand finding targets with the kind of conviction that has been absent from his grass-court game in previous years.

Only in the third set, with Royer holding his nerve on serve and refusing to capitulate, did Zverev’s concentration momentarily dip — a tiebreak eventually settling it in the German’s favour. But the overall picture was encouraging. Nineteen winners against seven unforced errors through the first two sets is the kind of ratio a Roland Garros champion needs if he is to go deep at Wimbledon in a draw already missing Carlos Alcaraz. His third-round opponent is yet to be confirmed, but the bracket is opening up in front of him.

Tiafoe: Halle Confidence, Wimbledon Momentum

The American contingent at Wimbledon is in rude health — seven men advancing to the third round on Day 4 alone — and their most dangerous representative is in the kind of form that makes even the top seeds uncomfortable. Frances Tiafoe, who won the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle last month — defeating Cobolli, Auger-Aliassime, Altmaier and Fritz along the way — defeated Jan Choinski 4-6, 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 in two hours and 50 minutes on No. 2 Court.

The opening set was scrappy, Choinski’s flat groundstrokes and comfort on the surface troubling the 17th seed before Tiafoe found his range. What followed was a masterclass in big-match momentum management — a break at 6-5 in the third set, consecutive aces to reach set point, and then a dominant fourth set that closed in just 28 minutes. Tiafoe’s best career finish at Wimbledon is the fourth round, reached in 2022. The draw, the form and the self-belief all suggest he can go further this year. His third-round match against Alexander Bublik — who beat Kyrian Jacquet 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 on Day 4 — promises to be one of the most watchable matches of the weekend.

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Berrettini: Five Years On, Still Dangerous

The most emotionally resonant story of Day 4 has nothing to do with seedings or rankings. In 2021, Matteo Berrettini was the world No. 7 and the talk of the grass-court circuit — a serving giant who reached the Wimbledon final and lost to Novak Djokovic in four sets. Then came the injuries. The recurring hand operations. The long absences. The slow, grinding return to relevance that never quite recaptured those heights. He arrived at this Wimbledon without a seeding, without fanfare and with nobody pencilling him into the second week.

On Day 4, he beat 20th seed Arthur Fils 6-4, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 on Centre Court — his second seeded scalp of the tournament, after his extraordinary four-tiebreak win over Stan Wawrinka in the first round. The Italian’s serve remains one of the heaviest on the men’s tour — hitting 18 aces against Fils — and his backhand slice is as reliable on grass as any shot in the game. Fils, the French 20th seed who had been sharp through the early rounds, was simply outgunned on a surface that rewards the qualities Berrettini possesses in abundance. Berrettini’s run to the third round is the quiet story of the tournament so far. The rest of the draw would do well to notice.

Dimitrov Ends Menšík’s Run

Grigor Dimitrov provided Day 4’s most competitive match, defeating 15th seed Jakub Menšík 7-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 in two hours and 51 minutes. The Czech teenager — who had beaten Toby Samuel in a five-set first-round battle and shown real promise through the opening week — was ultimately undone by the experience and grass-court craft of the 35-year-old Bulgarian. Dimitrov, a Grand Slam finalist at the 2019 US Open and multiple-time semi-finalist across all four majors, as well as 2017 ATP Finals champion, has always played his most fluent tennis in London. On Day 4, he showed exactly why, staying patient through two tight sets before breaking Menšík in the third at a crucial moment and closing it out with authority.

The Rest of the Day — Seeds Advance Cleanly

Away from the headline matches, the day belonged to clean and uncomplicated progression. Fifth seed Alex de Minaur was again smooth and ruthless against Adrian Mannarino, winning 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 with barely a moment of stress. Sixth seed Taylor Fritz dispatched American qualifier Patrick Kypson 6-2, 6-2, 7-5 — the World No. 6 beginning to hit the kind of consistent ball-striking that could make him a genuine fourth-round threat. Ninth seed Flavio Cobolli was made to work hardest of the top seeds by James Duckworth, recovering from a second-set lapse to prevail 7-6, 3-6, 7-6, 6-1. Thirteenth seed Jiří Lehečka maintained his position as the tournament’s most underrated contender with a clean 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win over Alex Molcan. Karen Khachanov was efficient in dispatching Yannick Hanfmann 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

The day produced two seeded exits. Arthur Fils fell to Berrettini as noted, making him the fourth top-20 men’s seed eliminated before the third round, following Ben Shelton, Casper Ruud and Learner Tien. The other loss came further down the draw, where 28th seed Brandon Nakashima was beaten in a five-set thriller by Jan-Lennard Struff — a hard-fought defeat that adds further texture to a men’s draw already shedding names at a steady clip.

Day 4 is done. The chalk largely held. The draw is set. And on Saturday, when the third round begins in earnest, the tournament will begin to reveal what it actually is — and whether the men’s draw, wide open and missing its biggest name, is ready to produce a new Wimbledon champion or hand the trophy back to the defending one.

Wimbledon 2026 — Men’s Singles, Day 4 Results
All England Club, London | Thursday, 2 July 2026

Seeded exits: (20) Arthur Fils — fourth top-20 men’s seed eliminated; (28) Brandon Nakashima also falls
Next: Third round begins Saturday — Tiafoe vs Bublik the standout clash