Carlos Alcaraz Criticizes Chair Umpire for Being A “Problem” During His Round of 16 Win at Queen’s Championships

Carlos Alcaraz reached the quarter-finals of the Queen's Club Championships after beating Jaume Munar in three sets.

Carlos Alcaraz Criticizes Chair Umpire for Being A “Problem” During His Round of 16 Win at Queen’s Championships

Carlos Alcaraz (image via Roland Garros)

Carlos Alcaraz sealed his place in the quarter-finals of the Queen’s Club Championships after beating fellow compatriot Jaume Munar in a nervy match. The 22-year-old has now won 15 consecutive matches, the longest winning streak in his career. However, he was not happy with the chair umpire after receiving a warning for wasting time before serving.

Fresh off the Italian Open and Roland Garros victory, Alcaraz thrilled the crowd with a brilliant display in the first set. Munar looked off during that stage of the match but began to find his rhythm in the second set. The World No.59 showcased his talent on the grass-court with a rather resilient display.

Alcaraz tried to use his unique drop shots technique to shorten the point tussle, but Munar preferred extending the long rallies, which gave him the upper hand. The French Open champion let slip two match points in the second set tiebreak to gift Munar an opportunity to win the tie. In the deciding set, Munar continued with his aggressive rallies that didn’t go too well with Alcaraz.

The 22-year-old then decided to slow the match down a bit by wasting time before serving. According to the rule in professional tennis, the interval between the end of the previous rally and the next serve must not exceed 25 seconds. But Alcaraz exceeded the time and was served a warning by the chair umpire.

After that he produced an excellent comeback in the third set, from 2-4 to win 6-4, 6(7)-7, 7-5 in an absorbing three hours and 23 minutes. During his press conference, he opened up about the aforementioned rule, stating that it has to change, while criticizing the chair umpire for not understanding the conditions of the match:

I think they should change that rule. We played for three hours, we just had a long rally going to the net, and they should have stepped up and given us a little more time. There are a lot of situations where time is running out and we can’t prepare for the next rally, so you can’t play it properly, so it’s not the best thing for the show…I don’t remember the last time I was given a warning for time, and I didn’t have any problems in the first round. I think it’s the chair umpire’s problem, who probably wanted to take the center stage today.

Alcaraz is in his second quarter-finals at the Queen’s Club Championships. The Spaniard won the title on his debut in 2023 but failed to reach the quarter-finals last year after losing to Jack Draper in the second round.

Carlos Alcaraz is happy to win the “tough battle” against Jaume Munar

Carlos Alcaraz’s win against Jaume Munar has now improved his record on the grass court to 22-1 since the start of the 2023 season. His only loss came against Jack Draper in the second round last year. For the past two years, the Spaniard has been the best player so far on the surface.

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (via X/The Tennis Letter)

After his win against Munar, he was happy for his efforts, but revealed that he struggled mentally and physically during the match:

It was a really tough battle that we had today. Jaume is a great competitor, I think he showed how difficult it is to beat him. I’m just proud of the level I played, it’s my second match on grass this year. There were a lot of things going on, but I’m really happy. I struggled mentally and physically. I honestly still don’t know how I’m here now. I’m just really happy to give myself another chance in the quarter-finals.

Alcaraz was the favorite to beat Arthur Rinderknech and reach the semi-finals of the Queen’s Club Championships. And as expected, Alcaraz beat the Frenchman in straight sets to set up a semifinal clash against fellow Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut.

Also Read: Holger Rune Admits “It’s Impossible” to Match the Intensity of the French Open Final Between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner