Due to an abdominal ailment, defending champion Matteo Berrettini will not compete in next week’s National Championships at Queen’s.
Due to a stomach muscle strain, the 27-year-old Italian had to withdraw from the clay court season. Matteo Berrettini tried to make a return last week in Stuttgart, but Lorenzo Sonego beat him 6-1, 6-2.
By defeating Filip Krajinovic in the Cinch Championships final and becoming one of only eight players in the open period to successfully defend the Queen’s Club title, Berrettini joined a select group of competitors last summer.
As the runner-up to Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon in 2021, the world number 21 faced withdrawal last year due to testing positive for Covid. It remains uncertain whether the Italian will be fit enough to compete at SW19 next month.
Carlos Alcaraz
Top seed and world number two Carlos Alcaraz will make his debut at Queen’s and faces qualifier Arthur Fils in the opening round.
Alcaraz, 20, has limited experience on grass and will be hoping for an extended run in his bid to improve on his best result on the surface, which was in reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon last year.
Unseeded record five-time champion Andy Murray faces a tough opening match against Australian world number 18 Alex de Minaur.
The 36-year-old Scot heads to Queen’s in fine fettle after back-to-back ATP Challenger Tour titles on grass at Surbiton and Nottingham as he continues his build-up to Wimbledon.
British number one Cameron Norrie, Wimbledon semi-finalist last year and the fifth seed at Queen’s, will play Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic in the opening round.
Second seed Holger Rune, beaten by Norway’s Casper Ruud in the French Open quarter-finals, will bid to win his first tour-level match on grass when he faces American Maxime Cressy.
American third seed Taylor Fritz, a two-time title-winner on grass after victories at Eastbourne in 2019 and 2022, will play Spain’s Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the first roun
