LONDON: Carlos Alcaraz reached the Queen’s Club final for the second time as the world No. 2 eased to a 6-4, 6-4 win over Roberto Bautista Agut on Saturday.

Alcaraz extended his career-best winning streak to 17 matches in a semifinal played in sweltering conditions at the Wimbledon warm-up event in west London.

The five-time Grand Slam champion hit 36 winners and 15 aces to dispatch his fellow Spaniard in 90 minutes.

Top seeded Alcaraz will face Jiri Lehecka in Sunday’s final after the Czech world No. 30’s shock 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 win against British star Jack Draper in the other semifinal.

Playing his first tournament since his epic French Open victory against Jannik Sinner two weeks ago, the 22-year-old is through to his fifth successive final after lifting titles on clay in Paris, Rome, Barcelona and Monte Carlo.

Alcaraz signalled his emergence as a grass-court force by winning Queen’s in 2023, clinching the Wimbledon title for the first time just weeks later and defending his All England Club crown last year.

He is one victory away from becoming only the second Spaniard to win Queen’s twice, after Feliciano Lopez’s victories in 2017 and 2019.

“I’m playing great tennis. After every match I’m feeling more comfortable. Making the final here is so special once again,” Alcaraz said.

“I love making the crowds enjoy watching my games. Whenever I put a smile on my face I play my best tennis.

“I try to have fun and bring joy on the court. That is why I’m making good results.”

Alcaraz wasted little time taking control against Bautista Agut, unfurling a deft drop-shot to break in the third game of the match.

That was all the encouragement Alcaraz needed as he held serve with ease to close out the first set.

Bautista Agut, 37, enjoyed a surprise win over Danish fourth seed Holger Rune in the last eight.

But Alcaraz never looked like suffering the same fate and he delivered the knockout blow in the second set.

A whipped forehand down the line earned a break-point that he converted to move 3-2 ahead.

The nerveless Alcaraz finished off the win in typically ruthless fashion to the delight of the fans waving Spanish flags to salute their hero.

Earlier, Lehecka ended Draper’s bid for a maiden Queen’s final appearance.

Lehecka, who will be playing in his first ATP grass-court final, is the first Czech to reach the men’s title match at Queen’s since Ivan Lendl lifted the trophy in 1990.

The 23-year-old said: “It means a lot. You don’t meet a player like Jack every day, he’s an amazing competitor.”

Draper was hoping to become the first British singles champion at Queen’s since five-time winner Andy Murray’s most recent victory in 2016.

But the world No. 6 will have to wait at least another year to get his hands on the silverware after claiming a bout of tonsillitis played a role in his defeat.

“I haven’t felt good all week. I’m proud of the way I went about things, considering, but it’s tough,” he said.

“You’re an entertainer, an athlete, and you have no choice. No one cares, you know. So you’ve just got to go out there and do the best you can.

“Today’s probably the worst I’ve felt. Did I think about withdrawing? No, not at all. I’m in the semifinals at Queen’s. I’d probably go on court with a broken leg.”

Lehecka had already ended the hopes of one Briton at Queen’s after beating Jacob Fearnley in the quarter-finals on Friday.

He also defeated world number 12 Alex de Minaur in his opening match of the tournament, but knocking out Draper was his biggest scalp yet.

SEATTLE: Valentin Carboni scored the game-winning goal in stoppage time to give Inter Milan a 2-1 win over Urawa in the Club World Cup on Saturday, ending the Japan club’s chances of advancing past the group stage.
Inter Milan failed to score until the 78th minute, despite holding the vast majority of possession. Lautaro Martinez brilliantly bicycle kicked Nicolo Barella’s corner ball into the net.
Carboni’s game-winner assisted by Francesco Esposito came 14 minutes later. It was the culmination of multiple scoring threats by Inter, which had 21 more shot attempts than the Red Diamonds.
Urawa opened the scoring in the 11th minute to the delight of their exuberant fans, who have shown up in droves for these Seattle cup matches. Ryoma Watanabe scored on an assist in transition by Takuro Kaneko, who found Watanabe all alone on the penalty spot with his cutback ball.
The fans in red filled the south end of Lumen Field and made up a large swath of the 25,090 attendees. Their coordinated chants and jeers didn’t wane until after the final whistle.
Key moment
Urawa had a chance to equalize in the last minute of stoppage time, but goalkeeper Yann Sommer tipped the long-distance free kick over the crossbar.
Takeaways
Inter Milan takes over the top spot in Group E after following up their tournament-opening draw with the victory. The Italian club will play River Plate of Argentina on Wednesday.
Urawa will be playing for pride against CF Monterrey on Wednesday.
What they said
“I cannot find the words, I am so frustrated. ... We had the objective to go on to the next stage, so this loss is very hard for us. But we still have one more game to go. ... There are many fans who have come all the way or (are) still remaining in Japan and cheering for us, so we would like to win for them.” — Urawa Red Diamonds goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa
“I was speaking to (Carboni) the day before yesterday, and he told me that it was eight months exactly since his cruciate ligament injury. Coming through an injury like that, with all of the hard work and graft he’s had to put in ... you don’t know whether you’re going to come back to the peak of your powers. That’s not easy at all, so it was lovely to see him so emotional. I was a little bit emotional as well. It brought a tear to my eye because he’s a kid that I know very well. I’m delighted that he has the opportunity now to experience something as significant as that (goal).”