Carlos Alcaraz faces the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinals of the Queen's Tournament this Friday, after beating the Czech Jiri Lehecka (6-2, 6-3) in the round of 16. It is the first time that the Murcian is planted in this round on grass, where he seeks to show the best version of himself.
The victory against Lehecka has encouraged the tennis player from El Palmar. His expectations at Queen's have changed and now he wants to win the tournament: "After seeing the level we have shown, how I felt, the expectations have changed. Now I feel capable of getting a good result here. This gives me a lot of confidence for the following rounds and for Wimbledon".
Alcaraz acknowledges that he has tempered his nerves. "Winning the tournament was not in my head, far from it; the objective was to feel better and better. Once we are in the quarterfinals I want to win. By not putting myself as one of the favorites that I am not, the pressure goes away and you play much more relaxed", he explained after beating the Czech.
Dimitrov will be a tough nut to crack. The Bulgarian, who forgot to sign up for the London tournament and had to play the preliminary phase, has not lost a single set all week and against Cerúndolo he demonstrated his sublime superiority on this surface, the one that best suits his game.
In recent clashes, the Murcian defeated him last year at the 1,000 Masters in Paris-Bercy in two sets and overwhelmed him a little over a month ago at the 1,000 Masters in Madrid.
The quarterfinal match of the Queen's Tournament between Carlos Alcaraz and Grigor Dimitrov will be held this Friday, June 23, starting at 5:00 p.m. The meeting can be seen on television on Movistar and can also be followed live on the La Vanguardia website.
