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Lehecka on strategy and perspective ahead of Alcaraz showdown at the US Open

Lehecka, who beat Alcaraz this year in Doha, outlines focus and adjustments ahead of their US Open quarterfinal.

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Jiri Lehecka enters a Grand Slam quarterfinal against Carlos Alcaraz with recent experience and renewed perspective. The No. 20 seed, who upset Alcaraz earlier this year at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha, said he will rely on focus and his own strengths rather than a single tactical trick.

“No,” he joked at the end of his post-match press conference on Sunday. “I mean, of course, against a player like Carlos you need to bring your best, and it means that it’s not only about playing one particular shot, because he knows how to react. That’s his big weapon. You know, that he knows how to react when someone is playing well, when someone is playing this or that.

“So, you need to bring your best. You need to be well-focused through the whole match. That’s something what I will try to do, to play my game.”

This will be Lehecka’s second Grand Slam quarterfinal and his first since the 2023 Australian Open. He first signaled his potential as a 21-year-old, when he reached a major quarterfinal by toppling seeds Cameron Norrie and Félix Auger-Aliassime in only his fifth Grand Slam main draw. After rising steadily in the rankings, he stalled just outside the top 20 before an injury lay-off helped reframe his priorities.

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“I think that I needed to grow up a little bit as a person,” Lehecka revealed after a four-set victory over Adrian Mannarino. “I’m more mature now, I think, and I think that’s also part of the game. You know, to realize that tennis isn’t everything, that there are also other things in life, and the way I see it is I think that we are kind of privileged that we have the chance to compete, you know, to do what we like, what we love, and to bring that in front of all the guys. But at the same time when I’m on the court, I’m not getting myself under more pressure than is necessary.”

“Back then I remember that I was coming for a treatment to the hospital, and I saw little kids who were very, very sick, and they were enjoying life, and I was, like, feeling like that it’s the end of the world for me, and I can’t play only because my back hurts.

“That was the moment when I really, like, something switched. Since that moment I kind of feel that, of course, I love to win. I like to play the game. It’s something I wake up every morning with the goal to improve, and I think all the players here at the biggest stage, they have the same.”

Lehecka also described adjustments to suit the surface at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, and cited recent form that includes a first ATP 500 final at Queen’s Club and a three-set match with Alcaraz earlier this summer.

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“In the last few years, I didn’t really feel myself in New York,” Lehecka told me after reaching the fourth round on Friday. “I didn’t really feel the surface was right for me. Hard courts are good, but at the same time I didn’t really like the bounces or how rough the surface is. It wasn’t fitting my game that much, so that’s why we were focusing this year in our preparation to adjust a few things, to work a little bit more on my forehand and how I approach the ball.

“I must say that the only performance where I wasn’t really feeling good was the first round against Borna, which, of course was a tough match because he’s a very experienced player. It was also a first-round match, so you never know what tot expect. Since that moment, I added a couple more practices and with every match I’m feeling better and better, so I’m very happy with the progress.”

“I must say that I’m very happy that I had a chance to play against him this year already twice…Of course, I know that he’s playing very good tennis. He’s moving very well. He can serve big. He knows everything. His game is complete, I would say.

“So, for me I will just try to stick to the weapons that I have, to the weapons which worked for me in these last two matchups. We will see, of course. We have never played each other on a Grand Slam stage. So that’s something new for me and for him as well, because we played each other only on, let’s say, smaller tournaments. I think that the match will be great, and I can’t wait for it.”

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ATP French Open Grand Slam

Fonseca’s Paris surge: a 19-year-old handling the hard part at Roland Garros

Fonseca’s Paris run: the 19-year-old beat Djokovic and Casper Ruud, showing power and poise. Greatly

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Joao Fonseca followed a headline-making third-round victory over Novak Djokovic with another major statement at Roland Garros, defeating two-time finalist Casper Ruud in four hours and minus four minutes of drama, 7-5, 7-6 (8), 5-7, 6-2. The 19-year-old Brazilian, already one of the tournament’s most talked-about young players, is now one of two teenagers through to the quarterfinals alongside Rafael Jodar.

Fonseca’s path here included a remarkable comeback against Djokovic, becoming just the second man to beat Djokovic at Roland Garros after dropping the first two sets, a mark previously set by Jurgen Melzer in 2010. On Sunday he traded heavy forehands and long rallies with the 27-year-old clay specialist before pulling away late. The final numbers underscored how close the contest was: each man finished with 51 winners and an identical 52 errors. Fonseca’s backhand, however, proved the decisive edge in several key moments.

Asked about his versatility in a post-match interview with Mats Wilander, Fonseca said: “It’s more like heart, or mind, I don’t know, I just try to be me on the court. Try to be happy, try to hit winners, try to hit good shots, try to be entertainment … try to be me, and that’s what it is.”

Those words echoed across a week that also drew the attention of Gustavo Kuerten, who watched the match and appeared pleased with the way Fonseca is building on a Brazilian legacy. Fonseca is a 6-foot-2 right-hander with notable power and a broad set of weapons; his temperament and shotmaking have become a central part of his rise.

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The run here follows a turbulent sophomore season: a nagging back injury that affected his off-season preparation, an early Australian Open exit and a 1-3 record heading into Indian Wells. He has been careful about expectations, saying in Monte Carlo, “I think the expectations are going to come. People see young players doing great things, and they pull us into the top of the rankings. People need time. Everyone has their own time, so I want to do my history. I hope I’ll be there competing against them [top players], but people need to understand that I need time to become what they want me to do and I want to become.”

Fonseca’s run now brings fresh comparisons and cautions; Jim Courier advised, “Be careful of that hangover.” Still, after five-set wins over Dino Prizmic and Djokovic and Sunday’s victory over Ruud, Fonseca’s immediate problem is simple: maintain the level that has taken him this far. I just try to be me on the court. Try to be happy, try to hit winners, try to hit good shots, try to be entertainment … and that’s what it is. Joao Fonseca

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ATP French Open Grand Slam

Roland Garros fines Adolfo Daniel Vallejo $65,000 after sexist remark about chair umpire

Vallejo fined $65,000 by Roland Garros after saying the match ‘has to be refereed by a man’ in 5 sets

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Roland Garros has imposed a $65,000 fine on Paraguayan Adolfo Daniel Vallejo after comments he made about the chair umpire following his second-round match.

The 22-year-old, ranked 71st, lost a nearly five-hour, five-set match to 17-year-old Frenchman Moise Kouame. Vallejo led 5-2 in the fifth set before the contest was decided in a tiebreaker. After the match he criticized Brazil’s Ana Carvalho, saying she was not strong enough to handle the partisan crowd and that such a match “has to be refereed by a man.”

“It’s a very demanding crowd and you need a lot of strength to go against the crowd,” he told Spanish-language outlet Clay. “The crowd was very out of line, but I understand they’re supporting their compatriot. It’s quite an intense crowd and that’s why I was prepared; I already knew it would be like that and, to be honest, it didn’t harm me, but rather strengthened him.”

Roland Garros and the French Tennis Federation called the remarks “unacceptable” and said Vallejo would receive a “significant sanction.” “The competence of an umpire is not determined by their gender, but by their professionalism and ability to officiate at the highest level,” the statement read. “The outcome of a sporting event, whether positive or negative, can never justify or excuse such remarks.”

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Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo told reporters the fine was “representing roughly half of his prize money.” Organizers noted that players reaching the second round at the French Open receive 130,000 euros ($151,000) and later clarified that the fine was $65,000, not euros. “This is clearly unacceptable,” Mauresmo said. “Once again, such remarks have no place here.”

Vallejo subsequently said his comments had been misrepresented and issued an apology on social media. “my comments were not meant in the way they have been understood.” “I have respect for the umpire and for the job they do, after a [five-hour] battle I was very heated and with a lot of emotions, I apologize,” Vallejo wrote on Instagram late on Friday. “I also want to clarify that I didn’t blame the lost [sic] on her, she did a good job throughout the whole match.”

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ATP French Open Grand Slam

Cobolli weathers late scare to reach Roland Garros Round of 16

Cobolli escaped a fourth-set collapse, winning the tiebreak to reach the Roland Garros Round of 16..

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Flavio Cobolli survived a tense finish to his fourth-round match, holding off a spirited rally from Zachary Svajda to reach the Roland Garros Round of 16.

Cobolli moved ahead 5-1 in the fourth set with hopes of finishing in under three hours, but Svajda fought back to win five consecutive games. The No. 10 seed was broken twice while serving for the match and missed a match point at 5-4. Cobolli dropped a mini break at 5-4 in the tiebreak but steadied to close out the victory and avoid a deciding set.

Speaking on Court Philippe Chatrier after the match, Cobolli did not hide how close the moment came to slipping away. “The only thing that I understood today is that the match is never done. I almost sh\ my pants,” he told the Court Philippe Chatrier crowd. “Now I’m happy but I’m still nervous. I have to recover a bit now.”

In the press, he reflected on how pressure affects his game. “I think when the match is almost done, you start to think of it, and that’s the problem with my character, because I don’t like to think a bit. I just want to play my best tennis possible. But if I think, especially if I’m nervous, I start to play a different tennis, and of course the Chatrier is not easy for everyone. So I think also the court was tough.”

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Asked about the celebration on court that followed, Cobolli said, “I think they deserve to win the Champions League,” in reference to the ceremony he returned to Chatrier to attend.

The 24-year-old reached the third Saturday at a major for the second time, matching his best Grand Slam run after a quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon last summer. He is the only man to reach the round of 16 without dropping a set this fortnight. Cobolli has 13 wins in this season’s European clay swing, including victories over Alexander Zverev in Munich and a Top 10 win over Daniil Medvedev en route to a Madrid quarterfinal.

Cobolli will next face the winner of fourth-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alejandro Tabilo. Two countrymen, Matteo Berrettini and Matteo Arnaldi, were due on court later Monday.

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