Garin stages dramatic comeback to reach Wimbledon quarters
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Chile's Cristian Garin staged a dramatic fightback to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals on Monday, battling back from two sets down and saving two match points to beat Alex de Minaur.
The unseeded Garin looked down and out when he was trailing by two sets to love but took the third set on a tie-break and went on to win 2-6, 5-7, 7-6 (7/3), 6-4, 7-6 (10/6) in a gruelling contest lasting four hours and 34 minutes.
"Honestly, I don't have any words right now," said the 43rd-ranked Garin, who will play Nick Kyrgios in the last eight. "I just gave everything I have.
"It was a very tough fight. It was a battle. I think Alex is an incredible player, for me one of the best on grass.
"I am exhausted. I just gave my best, and I think in the fifth set it was for him or for me.... I tried to be aggressive, went to the net, and tried to be aggressive with my serve as well. I think that was the key."
De Minaur, the 19th seed, was in charge from the start after breaking in the first game, before repeating the feat later in the set.
The Australian, who beat Garin on grass in Eastbourne last month, came out on top in a topsy-turvy second set that featured five breaks of serve to take an iron grip on the match.
But Garin appeared re-energised, finding the lines with his clubbed groundstrokes and De Minaur's early energy began to fade as the Chilean claimed the third and fourth sets to force a decider.
After an early exchange of breaks, a tense fifth set went the way of the Chilean, who had to fend off two De Minaur match points when serving at 4-5.
Garin stayed the more consistent in the deciding-set tie-break, securing a first Grand Slam quarter-final when De Minaur went long with a backhand.
The Chilean, 26, had been due to face last year's beaten finalist Matteo Berrettini in the first round at Wimbledon but the Italian was forced to withdraw with coronavirus.
Instead, he faced lucky loser Elias Ymer of Sweden before beating France's Hugo Grenier and American Jenson Brooksby to reach the fourth round at the All England Club.