Reigning Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova is under an injury cloud barely a week before her title defence is scheduled to begin.
Vondrousova retired from her second round match against Anna Kalinskaya at the grass-court Ladies Open in Berlin because of an apparent leg injury.
The Czech was leading 5-3 when she slipped behind the baseline and clutched her right leg.
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The 24-year-old got up holding her right hip area and returned after a medical timeout with the upper part of her leg heavily strapped. Her movement clearly hampered, she played two more games – lost both – and then retired.
It was a tough day for both Wimbledon champions from last year. Carlos Alcaraz lost his second-round match at the Queen’s Club Championships in straight sets to Jack Draper 7-6 (3), 6-3.
For Draper, the British No.1, it was the biggest win of his career. He was impressively composed in front of his home crowd.
Queen’s was Alcaraz’s only grass-court preparation last year en route to winning Wimbledon for the first time.
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But this time the Spaniard will have only two grass matches under his belt following his French Open victory. Wimbledon starts in 11 days.
Draper ended Alcaraz’s eight-match winning streak while extending his own to seven after winning his first ATP title last week in Stuttgart.
Draper didn’t drop serve against Alcaraz. They were finally separated in the first set in the tiebreaker, where Draper shot to 4-0 then 6-1. Alcaraz netted a return to concede the set.
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Alcaraz suffered the only break in the sixth game of the second set, after Draper’s backhand return serve down the line.
Draper saved a break point to hold for 5-2, then Alcaraz saved three match points to hold. Draper served out and threw his arms in the air.
“I knew I had to come out here and play really well, and luckily I did that,” he said on court.
First-round play begins at Wimbledon on July 1.