Canada’s Leylah Fernandez defeated Germany’s Tatjana Maria 6-0, 7-6 (1) on Sunday in the opening round of the Bad Homburg Open.
Fernandez of Laval, Que., had three aces to one double fault and won 61 per cent of her first-serve points.
The 22-year-old also broke on all four of her chances in the match.
Despite Maria’s big push in the second set, looking to extend the match to a third, Fernandez cruised in the tiebreaker, 7-1, to take the victory.
Maria had four aces, two double faults and won 67 per cent of her first-serve points.
The 37-year-old broke on her lone opportunity of the contest.
Alcaraz a champion in Wimbledon tune-up
Carlos Alcaraz showed he will be the man to beat at Wimbledon again after defeating Jiri Lehecka in the final at Queen’s Club on Sunday in London.
The top-seeded Spaniard replicated his debut triumph on the grass courts of west London in 2023 with a 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-2 victory.
It was an 18th-straight match win for Alcaraz, in his fifth consecutive final, following his title successes in Rome and at the French Open.
Lehecka had knocked out home hope Jack Draper on Saturday to become the first Czech finalist since Ivan Lendl won the title in 1990.
The 23-year-old Lehecka played his part in a high-quality final with some huge serves and powerful ground strokes, forcing the match to a decider via a tiebreaker.
But Alcaraz, the defending Wimbledon champion, did not face a single break point and slammed down 18 aces on his way to a 21st career title, and second at Queen’s.
Wimbledon starts June 30.
Bublik beats Medvedev to win Halle Open
Alexander Bublik finally defeated Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6 (4) on Sunday to win the Halle Open for the second time in Germany.
It was his first win in seven matches with Medvedev.
“Daniil, I’ve been cursed to play you forever and never won a set in my life, but today I’m happy to get through, and I wish you — you’re a great champion — I wish you a lot of success,” Bublik told his opponent afterward. “I mean, to win, to beat you here, it’s a privilege for me.”
The Kazakhstan player, who also won the grass-court tournament in 2023, is just the third player to claim the title more than once after three-time winner Yevgeny Kafelnikov and 10-time champion Roger Federer.
Bublik made a strong start and put together a 12-point winning streak in the first set. The second was not quite as fluid with five double-faults, but Medvedev produced consecutive backhand errors in the tiebreaker and Bublik seized his chance to wrap up the match in 81 minutes.
Bublik, who defeated top-ranked Jannik Sinner in the second round, dedicated the title to his wife and son, who were absent because of illness.
Medvedev, who saw off home favourite Alexander Zverev in the semifinals, was playing his first final since losing to Carlos Alcaraz at Indian Wells in March 2024.
