Taylor Fritz responds to video catching him stealing water bottles following last-16 Wimbledon win

Tuesday, 07 July 2026 at 17:00

There is a new thief in town. Following his last-16 win over Alexander Bublik, Taylor Fritz was caught stealing water bottles to add to his towel collection after a successful stint at Wimbledon.

The American is one of the title favourites with his grass expertise well documented. A brace of finals in Stuttgart and Halle may have ended in defeat but there were a lot of positives to take form it following an interrupted 2026 due to injury.

He reached a first ever semi-final at Wimbledon in 2025, losing to two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz at that stage. He will try to match that performance against either Alexander Zverev or Jiri Lehecka in what is set to be a thrilling tie.

Fritz responds to 'bottle thief' label

Following his win over the number 10 seed, Fritz was caught with a big white sack taking out numerous water bottles. It seemed that he was stealing a number of them for himself. It seemed to be thirsty work on court, and he was rewarding himself with some nice cold fluid.

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He responded to this by saying why he was not taking any towels to add to the water bottles. "I stole enough towels in the first three rounds, I'm good now."

As he was leaving the court, he chucked a lucky fan one of his towels before signing some souvenirs for the supporters, giving back to the community.

The tennis fans were still on his back after that light-hearted incident involving the water bottles. On Instagram, he attempted to defend himself. "I'm literally grabbing the bottles that I brought on the court."

Taylor Fritz is in a fourth Wimbledon quarter-final

The world number seven has had a very clean pathway through to the quarter-finals. He disposed of Dusan Lajovic following Jack Draper's withdrawal. fellow American Patrick Kypson was defeated before he dropped his first set of the tournament against Lorenzo before coming back to win 3-1. He produced a statement win against Alexander Bublik.

He will have high hopes going into the rest of the event. He has reached a Grand Slam final before at the 2024 US Open, losing to Jannik Sinner. He will hope to have the quality to get over the line and seal his maiden major title.

Lucas MichaelTennis Journalist

Lucas Michael is a tennis journalist based in Cambridge, UK, specializing in comprehensive coverage of the ATP and WTA tours. For the past 1.5 years, he has been a core contributor to TennisUpToDate, where he has authored more than 3,000 data-driven match reports, deep-dive analysis pieces, and engaging liveblogs.

Lucas pairs real-time statistical analysis with on-the-ground reporting, frequently traveling to tournaments to cover the action firsthand from the press box and player press conferences. This blend of advanced metrics and direct access allows him to provide sharp context regarding player form, tactical trends, and breaking tour developments.

He holds a BA (Hons) in Sports Journalism. Grounded in core journalistic ethics, Lucas places a strict emphasis on meticulous sourcing, editorial accuracy, and a commitment to updating live content swiftly as verified information emerges.

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