The biggest grass-court week on the pre-Wimbledon schedule is upon us, as Halle and Queen’s Club take center stage. As usual, both fields are stacked. Among the players in action are Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Alex de Minaur, and Hubert Hurkacz.
Terra Wortmann Open
Where: Halle, Germany
Surface: Grass
Prize money: 2,255,655 Euros
Points: 500
Top seed: Jannik Sinner
Defending champion: Alexander Bublik
Draw analysis: Sinner is playing this week for the first time in his career as the No. 1 player in the world. Of course, that hardly means he will have an easy time being the last man standing in Halle. An absolutely loaded draw also features Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz, and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Sinner has to face Tallon Griekspoor in the opening round, while Tsitsipas is a potential quarterfinal foe for the 22-year-old Italian. Medvedev, defending champion Alexander Bublik, and 2023 Mallorca winner Chris Eubanks also find themselves in the top half of the bracket.
The other side includes Zverev, Hurkacz, Rublev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Stuttgart runner-up Matteo Berrettini. Zverev, who reached the French Open final, has an extremely favorable draw in Halle and should have no trouble reaching at least the semis in front of his German fans. Hurkacz, the 2022 Halle champ, also has a good draw and will likely meet either Rublev or Berrettini in the last eight.
Hot: Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Tallon Griekspoor, Tomas Machac, Flavio Cobolli, Jan-Lennard Struff, Luciano Darderi
Cold: Felix Auger-Aliassime, Oscar Otte, Max Purcell, Chris Eubanks
Quarterfinal predictions: Jannik Sinner over Jan-Lennard Struff, Daniil Medvedev over Chris Eubanks, Hubert Hurkacz over Matteo Berrettini, and Alexander Zverev over Dominik Koepfer
Semifinals: Sinner over Medvedev and Hurkacz over Zverev
Final: Sinner over Hurkacz
Cinch Championships
Where: London, England
Surface: Grass
Prize money: 2,255,655 Euros
Points: 500
Top seed: Carlos Alcaraz
Defending champion: Carlos Alcaraz
Draw analysis: What will Alcaraz do for an encore following his Roland Garros triumph? He can only hope he does the exact same thing he did last year at Queen’s Club: win the title. The second-ranked Spaniard, who also triumphed at Wimbledon in 2023, will be challenged right from the start by Francisco Cerundolo in round one and Jack Draper in round two. Cerundolo pushed Novak Djokovic to five sets in the last 16 at Roland Garros and Draper captured his first ATP title in Stuttgart on Sunday. Alcaraz could also run into Tommy Paul in the quarters and either Grigor Dimitrov or Ugo Humbert in the semis.
British tennis fans will also be paying close attention the bottom half of the draw, which is home to Andy Murray, Cameron Norrie, and Dan Evans. Murray begins what is presumably his Queen’s Club farewell against Alexei Popyrin before possibly facing Holger Rune in the last 16. Norrie opens with Milos Raonic and would then get Taylor Fritz. De Minaur, the ‘s-Hertogenbosch winner, is matched up with Lorenzo Musetti in round one and could meet either Ben Shelton or Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the quarterfinals.
Hot: Carlos Alcaraz, Alex de Minaur, Grigor Dimitrov, Jack Draper Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Matteo Arnaldi
Cold: Frances Tiafoe, Andy Murray, Adrian Mannarino, Milos Raonic, Cameron Norrie
Quarterfinal predictions: Tommy Paul over Carlos Alcaraz, Grigor Dimitrov over Ugo Humbert, Taylor Fritz over Holger Rune, and Alex de Minaur over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard
Semifinals: Dimitrov over Paul and De Minaur over Fritz
Final: De Minaur over Dimitrov
who ya got?