Carlos Alcaraz vs Holger Rune: Preview, Odds and Betting Tips - 13/07/2023 (Wimbledon)

Alcaraz continues to enjoy himself on the grass

World number one Carlos Alcaraz and sixth seed Holger Rune will face off in the Wimbledon quarterfinal on Wednesday. The very first time two players aged 21 or under will be playing at this stage of this Slam.

Top seed Alcaraz faced his biggest test yet at this year’s Wimbledon 2021 finalist Matteo Berrettini, losing the opening set 6-3 to the big-serving Italian on Centre Court. However, the 20-year-old Spaniard won the remaining three sets by a similar scoreline to book his place here. By virtue of the win, he took his season tally to 44-4 and 9-0 on the grasscourt.

On his part, Rune also had to come from a set down to beat Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in four sets to reach the quarters for the first time in his career. Rune is now 39-12 in the season and 7-1 on the grasscourt.

This is an historic meeting between the young guns and it promises to be a great match on Wednesday. It was at this stage that Alcaraz was beaten by Jannik Sinner last year and he has a chance to best that performance by beating his Danish opponent. Well, Rune will not be an easy opposition to overcome as he will be aiming for another push beyond this stage following his maiden quarterfinal appearance.

In terms of titles this season, Rune has a title this year, while Alcaraz has already won five titles and he aims to win in London following his first grand slam win at the US Open last year.

Form Guide: Carlos Alcaraz

Alcaraz has already reached new heights in 2023 with five titles in the first half of the season. He won his first title in Buenos Aires before following that up with an ATP Masters 1000 win at Indian Wells. Titles in Barcelona, Madrid, and London mean he has equaled his total haul from last year with six months to go in the season. 

The young Spaniard is superb on clay and hard court but has not enjoyed success on Grass until now. He defeated the likes of Jiri Lehecka, Grigor Dimitrov, Seb Korda, and Alex De Minaur to claim his first grass title at the London event just some weeks ago.

Alcaraz has played nine matches on grass this year and he is yet to taste defeat and he keeps going strong. At Wimbledon so far, he has been able to go past difficult oppositions like Nicolas Jarry and recently Matteo Berrettini.

Form Guide: Holger Rune

Rune has also enjoyed some success on tour this year. He made the Masters finals in Monte Carlo and Rome and went on to record his first win on grass against big serving Maxime Cressy in London some weeks ago. 

The 20-year-old Dane, who is making his second appearance on London's lawns, rallied from a set and a breakdown against Dimitrov to earn just his second Top 30 win on grass. Rune has played just seven matches on this surface in his career but he is aiming to win the Wimbledon.

He won the BMW Open back in April and has already dealt with some tricky opposition at this year’s event in London. Having dug deep to beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in five sets and Dimitrov in four sets, Rune will be beaming with confidence ahead of Wednesday’s match-up.

What to expect from the match

As stated in the form guide, both players have not played many matches on this surface but they have shown incredible adaption and resilience to get to this stage.

This will be their first-ever meeting on this surface and the other completed match was at the Next Gen finals (hardcourt) in 2021, which Alcaraz won comfortably in three sets.

Both Alcaraz and Rune like to dominate opponents from the backend of the court and have similar game styles characterized by good movement. Definitely, one should expect a tight contest between the two 20-year-olds.

Betting predictions

Rune to win a set

Rune may have not played much on this surface but his weapons and skills have been quite helpful at this slam. In their last meeting in Paris last year, Rune was on the verge of claiming a win until Alcaraz retired in the second set tie-break. In addition, the Spaniard has dropped a set in consecutive matches, so Rune should be able to nick one here too.

Alcaraz to win the first set

Alcaraz has been playing at an incredible level in this tournament until when he faced Berrettini. He dropped the first set but still found a way to get back in the match. Rune on the hand also dropped the first against Dimitrov and has not been a fast starter like Alcaraz.

Alcaraz over 20.5 games

Given how close this match-up has been in the few times they have met, we expect another tight game of tennis between these youngsters. Alcaraz is the clear favorite but Rune will not go down without a fight. In both previous meetings, they have played at least a tie-break and that could be the case again here.

Check out William Hill for great odds on this match!