Alcaraz crowned king of Queen's for second time

eNCA

3 hours ago

Carlos Alcaraz clinched his second Queen's Club title as the world number two warmed up for Wimbledon with a 7-5, 6-7 (5/7), 6-2 win against Jiri Lehecka in Sunday's final.
Alcaraz blasted 33 winners and 18 aces to subdue the gritty Czech world number 30 in two hours and 10 minutes in west London.
Having won titles on clay at the French Open, Rome and Monte Carlo, as well as the hard courts of Rotterdam, Alcaraz has now collected five trophies in 2025.
The 22-year-old has not lost since the Barcelona final against Holger Rune on 20 April and is enjoying the longest winning streak of his career with 18 successive victories.
Top seeded Alcaraz is just the second Spanish man to win Queen's twice after Feliciano Lopez, who lifted the trophy in 2017 and 2019.
"I'm happy to lift this trophy once again. It's a nightmare to play against Jiri, but it's been an incredible week," Alcaraz said.
"I came without expectations. I just wanted to play good tennis and get used to the grass.
"It's really special playing here every year. I can't wait to come back next year."
For a player raised on the clay courts of Spain, Alcaraz has developed into a formidable force on grass.
The former world number one signalled his emergence on the surface by winning Queen's in 2023.
He clinched the Wimbledon title for the first time just weeks later and defended his All England Club crown last year.
Alcaraz, who has an 11-1 career record at Queen's, will start his bid for a third successive Wimbledon title on June 30.
After his semi-final win over Roberto Bautista Agut on Saturday, Alcaraz fired an ominous message to his Wimbledon rivals, warning that his "grass-court mode" had been activated.
And on the evidence of his relentless display against the obdurate Lehecka, he is in no mood to surrender his All England Club crown.
- Ruthless Alcaraz -
Playing his first tournament since his epic French Open victory against Jannik Sinner two weeks ago, Alcaraz's march to the Queen's showpiece made it five consecutive finals for the Spaniard.
In contrast, Lehecka was playing in his first grass-court final after a shock win against British star Jack Draper in the last four.
The 23-year-old was the first Czech in the Queen's final since Ivan Lendl in 1990.
Lehecka had come from a set down to stun Alcaraz in the Qatar Open quarter-finals in February.
But there would be no repeat of that upset on the lawns of Barons Court.
In his second Queen's final, Alcaraz had an early chance to break in the fifth game of the first set.
Lehecka thundered down an ace to get out of trouble of that occasion.
But the five-time Grand Slam champion matched Lehecka's serve blow for blow, dropping just one point in his first four service games.
Alcaraz's piercing ground-strokes increased the pressure and Lehecka finally cracked in the the 11th game when an badly-timed double-fault gifted the first break to the Spaniard.
Alcaraz served out the set in typically ruthless fashion, but Lehecka refused to surrender without a fight.
A tight second set stayed on serve all the way through to the tie-break and, for once, Alcaraz stumbled with a key double-fault, allowing Lehecka to level the match.
Alcaraz was unfazed, breaking for a 3-1 lead in the deciding set when Lehecka netted an off-balance forehand.
Alcaraz had the finish line in sight and he wrapped up his latest title triumph with a flurry of searing winners.
By Steven Griffiths