Carlos Alcaraz wins Queen’s title, makes a statement on grass
Hindustan TimesFancy some Carlos Alcaraz special on grass, folks? Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after winning his final match against Australia's Alex de Minaur Playing just his third tournament on a surface that has troubled many of his more experienced and accomplished colleagues, the 20-year-old lifted the Queen's Club Championships crown in a perfect warm up to Wimbledon starting on July 3. In beating Australian Alex De Minaur 6-4, 6-4 in the final in London on Sunday, Alcaraz not only secured a first grass-court title of his young and greatness-promising career, but also returned to the No.1 ranking that was snatched away by Novak Djokovic after his record French Open title win earlier this month. Still, in the absence of a clear challenger — the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas have suffered early exits in the lead-up events — Alcaraz’s increasing feel for the grass adds an interesting touch to the Djokovic-vs-who Wimbledon context and the Djokovic-vs-Alcaraz developing rivalry. But it doesn’t change too much.” The Spaniard had, right after the French Open from which he was sent packing by Djokovic in the semi-final, downplayed his chances on grass, going as far as saying that he believed Nick Kyrgios had a more realistic shot at beating Djokovic at Wimbledon than him.