How Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard became the story of Wimbledon

WIMBLEDON—One by one, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and his monster serves are leaving opponents befuddled at Wimbledon.

“There wasn’t much to do, just guess where the ball was going,” said Sebastian Korda. “At one point, he had 80 percent first serves in for only one double fault.”

“A very tricky, tricky opponent on this surface, especially,” said Emil Ruusuvuori. “He’s still I believe going to improve even more. The wind didn’t really bother his game that much.”

At Wimbledon, nothing appears to be bothering the 6’8” Frenchman. He is the first men’s lucky loser to reach the fourth round of The Championships since Belgium’s Dick Norman, another 6’8” beanpole who slammed aces on the way to dispatching former champions Stefan Edberg and Pat Cash in 1995.

“Last week, I wasn't even in the draw so, of course, it feels good,” Mpetshi Perricard told reporters in French on Saturday. “Especially after beating good players.”

He was one of three Frenchmen to make the fourth round in SW19, alongside his good friend, Arthur Fils, and the since departed Ugo Humbert. Their success led French sports daily L’Equipe to proclaim on their website, “Wimbledon grass turns blue,” a reference to Les Bleus, the nickname given to its men’s national soccer team.

Mpetshi Perricard narrowly missed qualifying the Olympics—held in Paris, at Roland Garros—but with his ranking set to climb from its current No. 58 to 44th even if he loses to Lorenzi Musetti on his 21st birthday, landing in the biggest events is a certainty for the foreseeable future. He might particularly enjoy playing in Cincinnati in August, since the Kings Island amusement park is nearby and Mpetshi Perricard lists that he’d be a theme park tester (!), for one, if not a tennis pro.

His breakthrough in the last two months—winning the title in his hometown of Lyon in May, emulating Fils’ achievement of 2023—is sure to hearten French fans keen for a first men’s Grand Slam winner since Yannick Noah in 1983.

While French players are often known for their flair, Mpetshi Perricard’s stature means finesse and variety largely give way to power, although he was keen to stress that his volleying particularly helped him against Korda.

Further, he noted that he needed more than just aces to triumph on the clay in Lyon.

But that serve is still the headline grabber.

He joined Ivo Karlovic and John Isner (on site this year as a TV commentator) as players who have tallied 100 aces through three rounds at Wimbledon in the past 10 years. Fifty one aces came in five sets against Korda, 27 against Yoshi Nishioka in three sets, and 27 against Ruusuvuori—who had downed Stefanos Tsitsipas—in four sets.

“I knew it was going to be a very difficult match the way he had been serving,” Ruusuvuori told TENNIS.com.

At least Ruusuvuori can lay claim to being the lone player to earn a break against Mpetshi Perricard through three rounds.

If I can get the two-handed backhand of John Isner…I will have no more (failing) on this shot. Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard

Officially, he entered Sunday with the joint fastest serve of the tournament at 140 MPH, along with Ben Shelton. Official tournament statistics were unable to register serve speeds in his first two matches on Court 14 and Court 16, but in Lyon, he walloped a 151 MPH delivery against Hugo Gaston.

“I proved a lot to myself in matches in three, four, five sets,” said Mpetshi Perricard. “I hope to continue like this. I think I have the resources and that I can manage to maintain this level.

“I am very, very happy with what I showed.”

The form of such young, inexperienced players often varies in their early days, with matches on grass possibly turning into pick’ems if two hefty servers face off. But after his memorable first week at Wimbledon, one could understand why a French reporter asked how Mpetshi Perricard lost to world No. 225 Maxime Janvier in qualifying at nearby Roehampton.

“That’s tennis,” he replied. “You can lose against Janvier and you can win against Korda three days later. Against Janvier, I didn’t return very well. We said to ourselves that, now, we would have to change things on that aspect.”

Mpetshi Perricard, coached by Emmanuel Planque, watched the 6’10” Isner’s matches for some guidance on his own game. Asked what shot he would take from Isner, Mpetshi Perricard didn’t say the serve, which is understandable.

“It’s going to be his two-handed backhand because for the return, it’s very difficult to return with a one-handed backhand,” he said. “If I can get the two-handed backhand of John Isner…I will have no more (failing) on this shot.”

The brute force of his game counters a grin in his interviews that conveys warmth—something that has evaded this Wimbledon. Yet more rain is forecast for Monday when Mpetshi Perricard meets Musetti on the non-covered Court 2.

Mpetshi Perricard lost to Queen’s Club finalist Musetti in two tiebreaks on grass in Stuttgart, despite hitting 21 aces and saving all eight break points he faced. But well backed and surging, turning the tables wouldn’t constitute a major surprise.

“When I played earlier, so many people supported me,” he said. “It feels good, it's like being at home.”