Carlos Alcaraz’s Queen’s title makes him ‘red-hot favourite’ for Wimbledon

Alcaraz has won five Grand Slam titles across three events, with the Australian Open the only trophy missing from his swelling cabinet.

The 22-year-old’s sole US Open triumph came in 2022 and he sealed a first Wimbledon title the following year.

In 2024, he doubled up and became one of just six men in the Open era to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season, following in the footsteps of Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Djokovic.

Nadal (2008 and 2010) and Borg (1978, 1979, 1980) are the only men to have won the clay and grass-court Grand Slams in the same season on more than one occasion.

“Alcaraz had a great French Open and to win the French Open and Wimbledon used to be almost impossible … but in latter years because the grass courts are much harder with a higher bounce we’ve seen it happen quite a few times,” Cash added.

“It’s still a huge effort because the exhaustion to win a Grand Slam is extreme and he’s come over here and won this title as well.”

This month’s Roland Garros final was particularly draining as Alcaraz fought back from two sets down to beat world number one Jannik Sinner in a classic that was the longest French Open final at five hours and 29 minutes.

Alcaraz heads to the All England Club looking to join another elite club.

Just three men have won at least three successive Wimbledon titles in the Open Era.

Borg won five in a row between 1976 and 1980, with Pete Sampras winning three on the bounce (1993-1995) before bettering that achievement when he won four successive titles between 1997 and 2000.

Roger Federer was the most recent to achieve that feat when the Swiss dominated across five years from 2003 through to 2007.

Alcaraz has consistently shone on grass courts and he is fifth active male player to collect four or more titles on the surface, joining Djokovic (eight), Matteo Berrettini (four), Taylor Fritz (four) and Nicolas Mahut (four).

And he is just one of three Spanish men to win four grass-court tournaments after Nadal and Feliciano Lopez.

But Alcaraz has claimed his fourth at a much younger age – Nadal was 29 and Lopez was 37.