Novikov earns first Wimbledon main-draw berth

Dennis Novikov, playing in the Tiburon Challenger
last September, defeated Hiroki Moriya in the final
round of Wimbledon qualifying. Photo by Paul Bauman

   No. 28 seed Dennis Novikov of Milpitas in the San Francisco Bay Area beat unseeded Hiroki Moriya of Japan 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 on Friday at Roehampton to earn his first Wimbledon main-draw berth.
   "Unreal feeling qualifying for Main draw Wimbledon! Time for the real show!" tweeted Novikov, a 22-year-old former UCLA star.
   Novikov will play another 22-year-old qualifier, Luke Saville of Australia, in the first round on Monday or Tuesday, weather permitting. Monday's order of play will be announced Sunday.
   Saville won the Wimbledon boys singles title in 2011.
   Novikov is one of three U.S. qualifiers, two men and one women, at Wimbledon. No. 6 seed Bjorn Fratangelo defeated No. 22 Austin Krajicek 6-3, 6-1, 5-7, 6-3, and Julia Boserup beat Barbara Haas of Austria 6-0, 6-4 in a matchup of unseeded players.
   Fratangelo, 22, and Boserup, 24, also will make their Wimbledon main-draw debuts.
   First-round losers in singles at Wimbledon receive $41,000.