Alex Trelinski
DEFENDING champion at the pre-Wimbledon Queen’s Club tournament, Carlos Alcaraz, suffered a shock last-16 defeat on Thursday to British number one Jack Draper.
Spaniard Alcaraz, 21, went down in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3.
Both players have been in top form recently with Murcia’s Alcaraz winning his third Grand Slam title at the French Open in Paris, while Draper won his first ATP tour title in Stuttgart on Sunday.
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Thursday’s defeat ended Alcaraz’s streak of 13 straight wins on grass which included last summer’s Wimbledon final victory over Novak Djokovic.
He had been one win away from equalling Rafael Nadal’s best streak on grass, which were 14 victories secured between 2008 and 2010
The Spaniard’s Wimbledon preparations will now probably change to give him more match time on grass, with suggestions that he might sign up for next week’s exhibition event at Hurlingham.
His defeat also means that he loses 450 of the 500 rankings points gained by winning the Queen’s Club title last year and that means he is set to drop from his world number two position.
But with Novak Djokovic missing Wimbledon, Alcaraz will be seeded second and will avoid meeting Italy’s Jannik Sinner until the final, assuming there are no upsets along the way.
