C’mon, Tim! Wildcard Van Rijthoven ‘rides wave’ into Wimbledon’s last 16

Tennis’s most impossibly glorious streak is somehow still gathering pace. Three weeks ago, 25-year-old Tim van Rijthoven had never won a match on the main ATP tour and was ranked 205 in the world. Now, after rattling off an extraordinary eight-match winning run – including five victories over players in the top 30 – he will face Novak Djokovic in the last 16 of Wimbledon on Sunday. Most likely on Centre Court. No, Tim, you’re not dreaming. Tennis’s Cinderella Man really is coming to the ball.

If William Goldman had pitched something so ridiculous he would have been laughed out of Hollywood. Yet the way Van Rijthoven took out the 22nd seed Nikoloz Basilashvili with a painless, impressive 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 third-round victory suggested he has enough heft – and deft – to give even Djokovic something to think about.

“From the outside it obviously looks like a fairytale because it came out of nowhere,” Van Rijthoven said afterwards, as he tried to sum up what has happened to him in the past three weeks. “It’s basically a sum-up of a lot of hard work, a lot of belief, and eventually very positive vibes going into matches.”

The vibes started when he was given a wildcard to the ‘s-Hertogenbosch tournament in June . It quickly proved to be the tennis equivalent of Willy Wonka’s golden ticket. After winning his opening two matches he then blasted past three players in the top 15 – Félix Auger-Aliassime, Taylor Fritz and Daniil Medvedev – to win his first ATP title.

Soon after, Wimbledon offered him a main draw wildcard and the momentum has continued with him thumping the 15th seed Reilly Opelka in four sets and now Basilashvili with the efficiency of an old pro.

This latest win was again earned off the back of his muscular serve,