Defending champ Alcaraz recovers from mid-match dip to win at Queen's Club

Carlos Alcaraz made a winning return at the cinch Championships on Tuesday following his Roland Garros triumph earlier this month.

The Spaniard, who lifted his third major title on the Parisian clay, was not at his best in his first grass-court match of 2024, but he found a way to move past Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 7-5 and reach the second round at the Queen's Club.

"The first match in any tournament is never easy but even more difficult here on grass, starting the grass season," Alcaraz said. "You want to do a good result and have to deal with a lot of expectations that you put on yourself. I am really happy with the match and it was a good test, playing with Francisco. It was close in the second set. It is good to have tough situations. Having to deal with nerves."

Champion instincts 🧠

Back in London @carlosalcaraz saves three set points to edge Cerundolo 6-1, 7-5@QueensTennis | #cinchChampionships pic.twitter.com/JBNsTRTW86

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 18, 2024

Alcaraz is the defending champion at the ATP 500 event, having dropped just one set en route to the title last season. The 21-year-old backed that up by winning Wimbledon. The top seed started quickly in his first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Cerundolo, committing just one unforced error in the first set to move ahead. However, his level dropped at the start of the second set, with the Spaniard trailing 2-5.

From there, Alcaraz battled back impressively, saving three set points on serve at 4-5 before sealing victory to extend his winning streak on the surface to 13 matches.

The No. 2 player in the PIF ATP Rankings will next play Stuttgart champion Jack Draper.

Earlier, Lorenzo Musetti upset second seed Alex de Minaur 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. De Minaur was competing at a career-high No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings, having won the title in ‘s-Hertogenbosch last week. With his victory, Musetti snapped a 13-match losing steak against Top 10 opponents. The Italian next meets Daniel Evans or Brandon Nakashima.

Former Wimbledon quarter-finalist Taylor Fritz defeated Taro Daniel 6-3, 6-3, while Sebastian Korda continued his good grass-court form by downing Karen Khachanov 7-5, 7-6(5). Korda advanced to the the title match at the ATP 250 in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Italian Matteo Arnaldi eliminated 2021 Halle champ Ugo Humbert 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(6), saving one match point.

Alejandro Tabilo and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina’s match was suspended on Monday night at the start of the third set. Tabilo returned to seal a 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-1 win.