Carlos Alcaraz made much quicker work of his second grass-court match in 2023 compared to his first.
Alcaraz, who survived his Cinch Championships opener against Arthur Rinderknech in a third-set tiebreaker, cruised past Jiri Lehecka 6-2, 6-3 on Thursday afternoon for a spot in the quarterfinals. The 20-year-old’s second outing required one hour and nine minutes less less time on court (1:25 compared to 2:34).
Alcaraz did not drop serve a single time, saving all three of the break points he faced.
“I’m really happy with the level that I played today,” the world No. 2 assessed. “Jiri is a great opponent (with) great shots. He has a great game on grass. I’m really happy with the level; I think I had a really solid match. I played my game, I enjoyed playing here, and I’m really happy with my first quarterfinal here in Queen’s.
“After this match, after this level, the expectations change. I think I’m ready to [have] a good result here on grass. Playing my first quarterfinal here, I’m going to enjoy it of course. It’s a really beautiful place to play, so I’m enjoying every single second here and of course I will go into the next round with a lot of confidence and I will go for it.”
Alcaraz awaits either Grigor Dimitrov or Francisco Cerundolo on Friday.
nice one, Carlos