Liam Broady beats Casper Ruud in five sets for huge Wimbledon upset

Broady triumphed 6-4 3-6 4-6 6-3 6-0 on Centre Court to reach the third round for the second year in succession having claimed another major scalp.

This however was on another level entirely to his 2022 defeat of Diego Schwartzman as Broady came from 2-1 down to topple Ruud, a three-time Grand Slam finalist who is yet to get past round two in SW19.

Still, Ruud had been priced as a 1/5 favourite against a player ranked well outside the world's top 100, but Broady was fully deserving of a victory capped by a bagel in set five.

Broady may have unofficially been the warm-up event for home fans before Andy Murray faced Stefanos Tsitsipas later on day four but he instantly showed this would be no walk in the park for the fourth seed.

A wristy forehand winner on the second point of the contest signalled his intentions and despite going an early break down, the wild card came roaring back.

Three double-faults helped Broady get the first set back on serve but his backhand and flat-hitting was causing all sorts of problems for Ruud, who was runner-up at last month’s French Open.

Four games in a row put Broady in control and he clinched the opener in 46 minutes with the home crowd fully engaged.

It is no secret that grass is Ruud’s least favoured surface but the three-time grand-slam finalist was not about to roll over without a fight.

Like in the first set, the Danish player broke in the fourth game and this time he consolidated it with a hold.

Grit and determination have been synonymous with Broady’s career though and Ruud had to come through a nine-minute game, where five sets point were saved, before he levelled on his own debut on Wimbledon’s main stage.

The stakes were high in front of an almost packed out Centre Court but Broady was not about to let the pressure stifle his flair, with an attempted tweener highlighting that at the start of the third set.

While the full repertoire of shots from the British number five were on display when he held to go 4-3 up, with one drop shot perfect for the end-of-tournament highlights reel, his serve let him down as two double faults allowed Ruud to break before he served out to move two sets to one up.

Broady had failed to take two break points during the 10-minute service game that saw Ruud clinch the third set but he grasped his next opportunity to move 2-0 up at the start of the fourth.

It appeared to dent Ruud’s belief and the physio had to work on his right foot before a 118mph ace forced a deciding set.

World number 142 Broady was no stranger to a five-setter at Wimbledon, winning his two matches at the All England Club in 2022 after going the distance.

By contrast Ruud had only ever won twice here in four appearances and his radar remained off with Broady breaking to love in the opening game of the fifth set.

A gutsy hold by Broady followed but better was to follow with another marathon game resulting in a double break, sealed with an overhead smash.

The Stockport left-hander was in his element now and, after another break, a big forehand winner clinched a fifth-set bagel and the greatest victory of Broady’s nine-year professional career.

'A terrifying, exhilarating experience'

"I would've liked to have played him back home (in Stockport), but Centre Court Wimbledon will do!" Broady told the BBC.

"When I went to bed last night, I was having a think about what I'd say if I won the match, and I don't really know what to say now.

"It's a pretty terrifying, exhilarating experience, coming out on Centre Court at Wimbledon. It's been my dream since I was five years old.

"I said to my mum this morning, look I've already won eighty grand this week so you can chill out a bit!"

Asked how far he could go with Canada's Denis Shapovalov next, Broady added: "Denis is a mercurial talent, he's one of the best players in the world, as Casper is.

"He's an amazing player but with a crowd like this, why not? Why not have a go again?"

Boulter battles her way through

Katie Boulter battled into the Wimbledon third round for the second straight year and set up a potential meeting with reigning champion Elena Rybakina.

The sole British woman remaining in the singles draw recovered from a second-set wobble to beat Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova 6-0 3-6 6-3 on Court 12.

Watched by Australian boyfriend Alex De Minaur, who won his delayed first-round match earlier on Thursday, Boulter equalled her best showing in SW19.

Tomova is ranked 10 places below Boulter at 99 in the world, but she appeared a dangerous opponent having recorded her first top-30 win in the opening round by defeating 27th seed Bernarda Pera.

Yet Boulter was all over her from the start, an aggressive opening return game securing the first of three breaks of serve.

Having seen the first set race away from her in just 27 minutes, Tomova finally got on the board in the second and then nicked a break from the previously impeccable Boulter serve.

The British number one hit straight back with a glorious winner, but Tomova had got in her stride, switching tactics and changing angles to unsettle her opponent and level the match.

Back-to-back net cords helped Boulter break for 2-0 in the decider and after that second-set blip, she regained her composure and asserted herself on the contest once more.

The Boulter serve was back on song, but she needed to come out on the right end of an epic 24-shot rally before converting a third match point with her 36th winner to wrap up a fine victory.