Carlos Alcaraz Advances To Quarterfinal Of Queen’s Club Championships

Spain’s young tennis sensation Carlos Alcaraz advanced to the quarter-finals of the Queen’s Club Championships on Thursday. He beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-2, 6-3 to reach his first grass court quarter-final. “I’m very happy with the level I played today. Jiri is a great opponent, great shots,” said the Spaniard in his on-court interview as quoted by ATP. “He has a great game on the grass. I am very happy with the level. I think I had a very strong game. I played my game, I enjoyed playing here and I am very happy with my first quarterfinal here at Queen’s,” he said.

The 20-year-old had a 4-2 tour-level record on grass at the start of the week, but is quickly gaining confidence on the surface. Alcaraz prevailed in one hour and 25 minutes to set up a matchup in the round of eight against Francisco Cerundolo, the eighth seed, or former World No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov.

The Spaniard had some significant challenges at one point. He had three break points for 3-1 in the second set. Lehecka missed two chances due to errors on his forehand returns and shorthands, while Alcaraz ended the other opportunity with a forehand winner. In the entire match, he only faced those two break points.

“After this match, after this level, the expectations change. I think I’m ready to make a good result here on the grass. Playing my first quarter-final here, I’m going to enjoy it of course “It’s a beautiful place to play, so I’m enjoying every second here and of course, I’ll go into the next round with a lot of confidence and I’ll go for it,” said Alcaraz.

This week, Alcaraz is focusing on more than his first victory on a grass court. He will once again take control of Novak Djokovic’s position as World No. 1 in the ATP Rankings on Monday if he wins at the Queen’s Club.

Holger Rune defeated home favorite Ryan Peniston 6-3, 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals of the Queen’s Club Championship.

Rune will play fellow sixth seed Lorenzo Musetti, who beat Ben Shelton in three sets earlier in the day.

Rune is making his debut in the tournament and a two game series is still to be played. Against Peniston, the 20-year-old was in no danger, saving the three break points he faced.

Peniston established himself as a talented grass court player. His six wins at tour level have come to light, and he stunned Casper Ruud and Francisco Cerundolo at Queen’s Club last year.

However, the Danish Rune set the tone by breaking his opponent’s left hand serve in the opening return game of the match. He struggled to attend the first set and the match, but always managed to dig himself out of trouble.

“I think the most important thing is that I came with a very, very humble approach on the surface and [was] ready to adjust it at any moment,” ATP.com quoted Rune as saying in his on-court interview.

“I played with Ryan last year, so I knew what I was getting into. Last year I didn’t see him play that much, but I’ve seen him throughout the year now and he’s a great player , especially on this surface. ,” he said.

Praising his opponent, Rune said, “It’s dangerous. It makes you move and we all know how hard it is to move on grass, so I’m happy to get through.”

In other action, Sebastian Korda prevailed in an all-American battle against Frances Tiafoe 7-6(2), 6-3.

“Me and Frances always have some battles and they’re very happy to go through in straight sets,” Korda said in his on-court interview.

“France, he always puts on a show, he always gets the crowd involved. Sometimes you just have to put your head down and take care of business. That’s all you can do really because when it starts he’s outgoing and kind. If he brings everyone in, he plays some of the best tennis on Tour,” he said.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and has been automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)