STUDENT star Oliver Tarvey aced his first Wimbledon exam – to set up a potential round two magic match-up with defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Tarvet, 21, is the lowest-ranked player in the men’s draw, standing a lowly 733 in the world and just 33rd in the British ladder.
His status as an amateur student at the University of San Diego means he is restricted to earning just £10,000 in prize money every year – although he can spend extra cash on his support team.
Maybe it was a book on accounting that he picked up to read between games – although perhaps it was a guide on keeping calm when his opponent is losing it with the umpire, as Swiss Leandro Riedi did under the broiling sun.
Doubtless Tarvet will be asked to clarify later.
But while the straight sets 6-4 6-4 6-4 win over the whinging Swiss would otherwise be worth £99,000, the bigger prize is the chance to walk out on either Centre Court or No1 on Wednesday against the Spanish reigning king of SW19.
Tarvet showed real maturity, too, on his Grand Slam debut – as Riedi went loco with his home opponent AND the umpire.
After Tarvet had taken the opener in 45 minutes, taking one against the serve in the ninth game, he broke Riedi to love in the third game of the second set.
That sparked an angry reaction at the changeover as Riedi implicitly accused Germany umpire Miriam Bley of favouring the St Albans-born Tarvet.
While Tarvet sat on his chair, Riedi moaned about him taking too long between points, then ordering Bley ““do something about it”.
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The row ignited when Riedi stared at the umpire, suggesting her lack of action was “because he’s British”, suggesting the chair official was not impartial.
When Bley stated “I’m not British”, Riedi answered back: “I don’t care”.
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And that brought a stern rebuke: “I would be careful with statements like that.”
Riedi continued to chunter as the home fans warmed to the task under the blistering sun, cries of “Oliver” – in both British and American accents.
They were interspersed with shouts of “Gareth” from his team – a nickname relating to his resemblance to former Spurs, Real Madrid and Wales superstar Gareth Bale.
Tarvet, keeping cool by using an iced towel around his neck at every opportunity, held his nerve again to serve out to double his advantage and leave himself one set from victory.
And when the Swiss went long on Tarvet’s second break point in the seventh game, it was a matter of the Brit holding his nerve and his serve.
Target did exactly that, successive aces bringing three match points, and sealing the deal as Riedi sent a backhand well beyond the baseline.
After a one-handed salute he went to the other side of the net, clenching both fists and punching the air before rushing to the end of the court and hugging his entire support team.
ReutersThe Hertfordshire star dumped out fellow qualifier Leandro Riedi 6-4 6-4 6-4 on Court 4[/caption] GettyTarvet must forego his prize money as a college player in the USA[/caption] BBCTarvet took in the adulation of the home crowd after securing victory[/caption] Read More Details
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