Latest news with #Alcaraz
New Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Alcaraz overcomes Munar marathon to reach Queen's quarters
LONDON: Top seed Carlos Alcaraz was pushed all the way by fellow-Spaniard Jaume Munar in a thrilling contest before clinching a 6-4 6-7(7) 7-5 win and advanced to the Queen's Club Championships quarter-finals on Thursday. Alcaraz recently came out on top in an epic French Open final against Jannik Sinner, and while this second round clash in London may not have reached those same dizzying heights, the British crowd were served up an enthralling battle. The world number two was a break down in the deciding set but showed his strength once more as Alcaraz stretched his winning run to 15 matches, the longest streak of his career. "It was a really tough battle that we had today," Alcaraz said after more than three hours on court. "He's a great competitor and he showed how difficult it is to beat him." Alcaraz, the 2023 champion, looked well in control as he eased to take the opening set, and after saving four break and set points at 5-4 down in the second he forced Munar to a tiebreaker. The pair traded early breaks with neither player holding serve over the first four points, before a Munar double fault allowed Alcaraz to take a 5-4 lead. He smashed an ace but then hit a double fault of his own on match point. Munar made him pay this time to force a deciding set. After Alcaraz went 2-0 up, the French Open champion was broken in his next two service games and Munar went into a 4-2 lead. Alcaraz, however, was not done yet, and two more breaks of serve sealed a hard-earned victory as he continued his preparations for Wimbledon, where the Spaniard will be aiming to complete a hat-trick of triumphs. "I'm proud of the level I showed today. It's my second match on grass this year," Alcaraz said. "There were moments I struggled a lot mentally and physically. I still don't know how I'm standing here. But I'm really happy I've given myself another chance in the quarter-finals." Alcaraz will face French lucky loser Arthur Rinderknech after his 7-5 7-6(3) win over American Reilly Opelka. Rinderknech has lost both previous meetings with Alcaraz, the last loss coming at Queen's in 2023. FEARNLEY ADVANCES British number two Jacob Fearnley reached his first ATP Tour quarter-final with a 6-3 2-6 6-2 win over French qualifier Corentin Moutet. "I'm very happy to be in my first quarter-final, it's even better to do it here in the UK," Fearnley said. "I tried to stick to my game plan and be aggressive. I did that better in the third set and the result speaks for itself." Fearnley raced into a 3-0 lead, and while Moutet broke back, the Briton responded immediately with another break of his own to ease through the first set. Moutet did likewise in the second, sailing 3-0 ahead before breaking for a second time to clinch the set and force the decider, where Fearnley broke twice before holding serve to love to clinch victory in style. The 23-year-old will now face Jiri Lehecka after the Czech beat Canada's Gabriel Diallo 6-4 6-2. — AFP
The Sun
7 hours ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Alcaraz survives Munar scare to reach Queen's quarters
CARLOS Alcaraz survived a huge scare against fellow Spaniard Jaume Munar as the world number two moved into the Queen's Club quarter-finals with a 6-4, 6-7 (7/9), 7-5 victory on Thursday. Alcaraz was forced to dig deep in a bruising second-round battle that lasted three hours and 26 minutes on the hottest day of the year in London. Gulping down pickle juice in between games to prevent cramp, Alcaraz had to battle back from 4-2 down in the final set before finally advancing. 'It was a really tough battle. He's a great competitor and he showed how difficult it is to beat him,' Alcaraz said. 'I'm proud of the level I showed today. It's my second match on grass this year. There were moments I struggled a lot mentally and physically.' Top-seeded Alcaraz was tested by Australian world number 86 Adam Walton on Tuesday. his first action since his dramatic French Open triumph against Jannik Sinner. On Thursday, the 22-year-old, preparing to launch his bid for a third successive Wimbledon title later in June, was given an even sterner examination by world number 59 Munar. It was not quite the incredible escape act Alcaraz staged when he saved three match points and fought back from two sets down to beat Sinner in the Roland Garros final on June 8. But Alcaraz had to summon the spirit of that triumph to hold off the gritty Munar. He made 53 unforced errors, but produced 49 winners to haul himself over the line. 'I just kept fighting' 'I still don't know how I'm standing here. But I'm really happy I've given myself another chance in the quarter-final,' said Alcaraz, whose current 15-match winning streak is the longest of his career. 'I just kept fighting. I guess I didn't give up. Honestly I was out mentally, but I stayed there and tried to play the points.' The exhausted Alcaraz celebrated by writing 'were we on clay?' on a TV camera lens before leaving the court. Alcaraz will play France's Arthur Rinderknech, a 7-5, 7-6 (7/3) winner over Reilly Opelka, on Friday for a place in the semi-finals. The five-time Grand Slam champion broke for the first time in the third game of the first set thanks to three successive Munar double faults. That was all the advantage Alcaraz needed as he closed out the set with a dazzling drop-shot that left Munar floundering. He found it harder to impose his will in the second set. Unusually sloppy with his ground-strokes and serve, Alcaraz squandered two match points in the tie-break and paid the price when Munar blasted a forehand winner to take the set. Alcaraz looked to have steadied himself with a break in the second game of the deciding set, but Munar hit back with a break of his own in the next game. Munar kept the pressure on and had victory in his grasp after breaking for a 3-2 lead. Alcaraz once again proved indefatigable as he broke at 4-4 and closed out his nerve-jangling victory with a perfectly weighted lob. In the other action on Thursday, Jacob Fearnley reached his first ATP Tour quarter-final with 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 win over Corentin Moutet. British world number 60 Fearnley has a perfect record of 17 wins from 17 matches against French opponents. The 23-year-old will face Jiri Lehecka in the last eight after the Czech world number 30's 6-4, 6-2 victory against Canada's Gabriel Diallo.
The Sun
7 hours ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Alcaraz survives scare to reach Queen's quarter-finals
CARLOS Alcaraz survived a huge scare against fellow Spaniard Jaume Munar as the world number two moved into the Queen's Club quarter-finals with a 6-4, 6-7 (7/9), 7-5 victory on Thursday. Alcaraz was forced to dig deep in a bruising second-round battle that lasted three hours and 26 minutes on the hottest day of the year in London. Gulping down pickle juice in between games to prevent cramp, Alcaraz had to battle back from 4-2 down in the final set before finally advancing. 'It was a really tough battle. He's a great competitor and he showed how difficult it is to beat him,' Alcaraz said. 'I'm proud of the level I showed today. It's my second match on grass this year. There were moments I struggled a lot mentally and physically.' Top-seeded Alcaraz was tested by Australian world number 86 Adam Walton on Tuesday. his first action since his dramatic French Open triumph against Jannik Sinner. On Thursday, the 22-year-old, preparing to launch his bid for a third successive Wimbledon title later in June, was given an even sterner examination by world number 59 Munar. It was not quite the incredible escape act Alcaraz staged when he saved three match points and fought back from two sets down to beat Sinner in the Roland Garros final on June 8. But Alcaraz had to summon the spirit of that triumph to hold off the gritty Munar. He made 53 unforced errors, but produced 49 winners to haul himself over the line. 'I just kept fighting' 'I still don't know how I'm standing here. But I'm really happy I've given myself another chance in the quarter-final,' said Alcaraz, whose current 15-match winning streak is the longest of his career. 'I just kept fighting. I guess I didn't give up. Honestly I was out mentally, but I stayed there and tried to play the points.' The exhausted Alcaraz celebrated by writing 'were we on clay?' on a TV camera lens before leaving the court. Alcaraz will play France's Arthur Rinderknech, a 7-5, 7-6 (7/3) winner over Reilly Opelka, on Friday for a place in the semi-finals. The five-time Grand Slam champion broke for the first time in the third game of the first set thanks to three successive Munar double faults. That was all the advantage Alcaraz needed as he closed out the set with a dazzling drop-shot that left Munar floundering. He found it harder to impose his will in the second set. Unusually sloppy with his ground-strokes and serve, Alcaraz squandered two match points in the tie-break and paid the price when Munar blasted a forehand winner to take the set. Alcaraz looked to have steadied himself with a break in the second game of the deciding set, but Munar hit back with a break of his own in the next game. Munar kept the pressure on and had victory in his grasp after breaking for a 3-2 lead. Alcaraz once again proved indefatigable as he broke at 4-4 and closed out his nerve-jangling victory with a perfectly weighted lob. In the other action on Thursday, Jacob Fearnley reached his first ATP Tour quarter-final with 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 win over Corentin Moutet. British world number 60 Fearnley has a perfect record of 17 wins from 17 matches against French opponents. The 23-year-old will face Jiri Lehecka in the last eight after the Czech world number 30's 6-4, 6-2 victory against Canada's Gabriel Diallo.
Straits Times
10 hours ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
World No.1 Sinner shocked in Halle by Bublik, Alcaraz survives Queen's scare
Italy's Jannik Sinner in action against Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik at Halle on June 19. PHOTO: AFP BERLIN - Defending champion Jannik Sinner lost his second-round match on grass at Halle on June 19 to Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik, the Italian's first tournament since his French Open final defeat. Meanwhile, world No. 2 Alcaraz survived a huge scare against fellow Spaniard Jaume Munar to move into the Queen's Club quarter-finals in Britain with a 6-4, 6-7 (7/9), 7-5 victory. World number one Sinner fell 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 to the 45th-ranked Bublik for the 23-year-old's first defeat to a player ranked outside the top 20 since the summer of 2023. A few days before his defeat to Alcaraz in the title match at the French Open, Sinner had easily dispatched Bublik in the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, dropping only six games. On June 19, ten days before Wimbledon, Bublik claimed his second victory in six ties against Sinner. The Kazakh will play Tomas Machac in the quarter-finals after the Czech beat Hungarian Fabian Marozsan 6-2, 6-3 earlier in the day. Earlier, world number three Alexander Zverev rallied from a set down to see off Italy's Lorenzo Sonego and advance to the quarter-finals on grass in Halle. The 28-year-old German won 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) against the 46th-ranked Sonego and next plays another Italian, Flavio Cobolli for a place in the semi-finals. A finalist in Halle in 2016 and 2017, Zverev recorded his fifth victory in as many meetings with Sonego, a year after beating him at the same stage of the same competition. Sonego took advantage of his only chance to break in the first set at 4-3. The German struggled throughout to break his opponent's serve. Zverev dug deep in the second set, leading 5-4, to win the set before dominating the tiebreak in the final set. Argentina's 63rd ranked Tomas Martin Etcheverry also reached the quarter-finals after a three-hour duel against fourth seed Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (8/6). The Argentine saved two match points in the tiebreak of the deciding set to set up a meeting with Russia's Karen Khachanov. Over at Britain's Queen's Club, Alcaraz was forced to dig deep in a bruising second-round battle against world number 59 Munar that lasted three hours and 26 minutes on the hottest day of the year in London. Gulping down pickle juice in between games to prevent cramp, Alcaraz had to battle back from 4-2 down in the final set before finally advancing. 'It was a really tough battle. He's a great competitor and he showed how difficult it is to beat him,' Alcaraz said. 'I'm proud of the level I showed today. It's my second match on grass this year. There were moments I struggled a lot mentally and physically.' Alcaraz will play France's Arthur Rinderknech - a 7-5, 7-6 (7/3) winner over Reilly Opelka on June 20 for a place in the semi-finals. In the other action on June 19, Jacob Fearnley reached his first ATP Tour quarter-final with 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 win over Corentin Moutet. British world number 60 Fearnley will face Jiri Lehecka in the last eight, after the Czech world number 30 beat Canada's Gabriel Diallo 6-4, 6-2. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Khaleej Times
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Khaleej Times
Alcaraz overcomes Munar marathon to reach Queen's quarters
Top seed Carlos Alcaraz was pushed all the way by fellow-Spaniard Jaume Munar in a thrilling contest before clinching a 6-4 6-7(7) 7-5 win and advanced to the Queen's Club Championships quarterfinals on Thursday. Alcaraz recently came out on top in an epic French Open final against Jannik Sinner, and while this second round clash in London may not have reached those same dizzying heights, the British crowd were served up an enthralling battle. The world number two was a break down in the deciding set but showed his strength once more as Alcaraz stretched his winning run to 15 matches, the longest streak of his career. "It was a really tough battle that we had today," Alcaraz said after more than three hours on court. "He's a great competitor and he showed how difficult it is to beat him." Alcaraz, the 2023 champion, looked well in control as he eased to take the opening set, and after saving four break and set points at 5-4 down in the second he forced Munar to a tiebreaker. The pair traded early breaks with neither player holding serve over the first four points, before a Munar double fault allowed Alcaraz to take a 5-4 lead. He smashed an ace but then hit a double fault of his own on match point. Munar made him pay this time to force a deciding set. After Alcaraz went 2-0 up, the French Open champion was broken in his next two service games and Munar went into a 4-2 lead. Alcaraz, however, was not done yet, and two more breaks of serve sealed a hard-earned victory as he continued his preparations for Wimbledon, where the Spaniard will be aiming to complete a hat-trick of triumphs. "I'm proud of the level I showed today. It's my second match on grass this year," Alcaraz said. "There were moments I struggled a lot mentally and physically. I still don't know how I'm standing here. But I'm really happy I've given myself another chance in the quarter-finals." Alcaraz will face either French lucky loser Arthur Rinderknech or American Reilly Opelka. British number two Jacob Fearnley reached his first ATP Tour quarterfinal with a 6-3 2-6 6-2 win over French qualifier Corentin Moutet. "I'm very happy to be in my first quarter-final, it's even better to do it here in the UK," Fearnley said. "I tried to stick to my game plan and be aggressive. I did that better in the third set and the result speaks for itself." Fearnley raced into a 3-0 lead, and while Moutet broke back, the Briton responded immediately with another break of his own to ease through the first set. Moutet did likewise in the second, sailing 3-0 ahead before breaking for a second time to clinch the set and force the decider, where Fearnley broke twice before holding serve to love to clinch victory in style. The 23-year-old will now face Jiri Lehecka after the Czech beat Canada's Gabriel Diallo 6-4 6-2.
