Jiri Lehecka started to turn some heads towards the end of 2022 with a run to the title match of the NextGen Finals.
Still, he popped onto everyone’s radar with a run to the quarterfinals in the Australian Open that saw him defeat Borna Coric, Chris Eubanks, Cam Norrie, and Felix Auger Aliassime before bowing out against Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Lehecka would follow up his performance in Melbourne with a trip to the semifinals in Doha and then a decent performance at the Miami Masters.
Things have slowed down for the 21-year-old since then, but that’s not unexpected for a young player during the European clay-court season.
But the clay season is now firmly in the rear-view, and Lehecka should enjoy the change to grass courts.
Like most young players, the native of Czechia doesn’t have much experience on the surface, but he’s 2-1 in three matches on the lawn this year.
He is coming off a win against the always-dangerous Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Lehecka will take a significant step up in weight class on Thursday. He’s a +360 underdog against World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in the Round of 16 at Queen’s Club.
Carlos Alcaraz vs. Jiri Lehecka prediction
(9:40 a.m. ET.)
As with Lehecka, it’s going to take some time for Alcaraz to get used to grass-court tennis.
That was clearly evident on Tuesday when the Spanish wunderkind needed to come back from a set down to defeat World No. 83 Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(3) at Queen’s Club.
This is just Alcaraz’s third tour-level grass-court event and the first one outside of Wimbledon, and it was clear that Alcaraz needed to figure out the nuances of playing on the lawn.
Alcaraz seemed to find his game in the second set, but then needed to battle from a break down to force the third set to a tie-breaker.
All in all, it took two hours and 34 minutes for Alcaraz to get the job done.
Get the lowdown on the Best USA Sports Betting Sites and Apps
- Check out the best sports betting sites
- Download the best sports betting app
On a different surface and at a different time — Alcaraz is just weeks removed from a heartbreaking loss to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semifinals — the Spaniard would be expected to roll over Lehecka, but this is a tricky spot for the reigning US Open champion.
Alcaraz is using this tournament to get some more reps on the grass ahead of Wimbledon and is a vulnerable favorite against dangerous opponents like Lehecka.
The over 21.5 (-134, BetRivers) games is certainly in play as this match figures to have some twists and turns, but Lehecka is well worth a shot as a decent underdog on Thursday.
Queen’s tennis pick
Jiri Lehecka +380 (FanDuel)