Carlos Alcaraz stepped onto grass for the first time outside of Wimbledon and tamed a French lucky loser on Tuesday to reach the second round at Queen’s club on Tuesday.
Spain’s world No. 2 needed a third-set tiebreaker to dispatch Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (3) after more than two and a half hours.
The 20-year-old had only competed on grass three times at Wimbledon – including juniors – but found his feet on the unique surface.
He finished off the tournament loser from qualifying on the third of five match points to advance.
“It was a tough match,” the winner said. “He played four or five matches on grass and this was my first one.
“It’s always difficult to adapt my game to the surface, but I really wanted to play here,” said the tournament debutant.
“It was a good first performance on grass. I can’t play on grass at home so I came here early to train for it, especially the movement.
“It felt really good for a first match of the season (on the surface).
“But I will be better in the next round,”
Alcaraz was playing his first match since losing a Roland Garros semi-final to dNovak Djokovic; he now takes on Czech Jiri Lehecka, a 7-6 (4), 6-3 winner over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Alcaraz, winner of four season titles, can displace Djokovic on the top if he wins the title on Sunday in west London.
