DOHA, Qatar — In a stunning upset at the Qatar Open, the top seed Carlos Alcaraz faced a challenging defeat to the 25th-ranked Jiri Lehecka, who emerged victorious with a score of 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, marking only Alcaraz’s second loss of the season.
The 21-year-old phenom from Spain, currently holding the No. 3 ranking, previously suffered his only defeat this year against Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. Alcaraz did impressively secure the title at the Rotterdam Open earlier this month.
Reflecting on the match, Alcaraz shared with the press, “I’ve discussed things with my team and my coach, and honestly, I’m not sure what I could have done differently. It was a challenging experience for me. I must acknowledge Lehecka’s resilience—he truly fought back when he was behind, especially in that deciding set.”
Alcaraz had a promising lead at 4-2 in the final set and even had a break point against Lehecka’s serve, but the Czech player rallied, clinching the next three games to secure his place in the semifinals.
Lehecka, 23, is set to face eighth-seeded Jack Draper next, who triumphed over Matteo Berrettini with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
“The match had its share of ups and downs from the very start,” Lehecka expressed after his win over Alcaraz. “Beating a player of his caliber is a monumental achievement for me. I believed in my abilities and knew I was capable of playing this level of tennis.”
“I refused to back down,” he added. “I aimed to push him to his limits, and maintaining my faith in my game was crucial today.”
Earlier in the day, fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev battled past second-seeded Alex de Minaur, saving one match point and needing to convert eight of his own to clinch a hard-fought 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (8) victory. This marks Rublev’s fourth semifinal appearance in Doha, where he previously claimed the title in 2020.
Rublev will next meet Canada’s Félix Auger-Aliassime, who advanced after Daniil Medvedev retired following a first-set loss of 6-3.
Medvedev commented, “I unfortunately suffered from food poisoning. I’m very disappointed to have my journey end this way in Doha, especially since I felt I was performing well.”
Auger-Aliassime reported on court, “I thought Medvedev was playing normally until he decided to retire. I broke his serve, held my own, and then he informed the umpire that he felt too unwell to shake hands after the match. I hope it’s nothing serious. It was definitely surprising.”
