The Queen’s Club Men’s Singles draw has been decimated over the past month.
A plethora of the world’s biggest stars, including Carlos Alcaraz and Jack Draper, were due to take part in the West London event.
Alcaraz, Draper, and seven other players have withdrawn from contention, leaving the Queen’s field light in terms of star power.
Rafael Jodar, the prodigious Spanish talent who has rocketed up the rankings this year, became the ninth man to withdraw from Queen’s on Monday afternoon.
Queen’s Club withdrawals
- Carlos Alcaraz
- Alexander Blockx – replaced by Aleksandar Kovacevic
- Luciano Darderi – replaced by Ignacio Buse
- Jack Draper – replaced by Gabriel Diallo
- Jaume Munar – replaced by Zachary Svajda
- Lorenzo Musetti – replaced by Botic van de Zandschulp
- Holger Rune – replaced by Márton Fucsovics
- Valentin Vacherot – replaced by Hamad Medjedovic
- Rafael Jodar – replaced by Marcos Giron
Queen’s has long been recognised as a premier ATP 500 event, won by the likes of John McEnroe, Andy Murray and Boris Becker.
Does this year’s field represent a decline in the tournament’s reputation?
Steve Johnson is not worried about the future of Queen’s
I think this is a random one-off year,” Johnson, the former world number 21, said while speaking to Sam Querrey and John Isner on the Nothing Major Show.
“When we were playing I felt like I was ranked 35 a lot and was hoping to get into Queen’s and never did because the cut was 26. It was always stronger [than Halle].
“I just think it’s the way the rankings have shaken out with who is at the top. If you look at Queen’s forever there was Murray, Carlos has always played it, Jack Draper, Musetti.
“So you had these big marquee guys play it who are either hurt or not playing. I think it’s more the way the pendulum has swung.
“And then in Halle you have guys who played there every year. Sascha is going to play, Ben plays every tournament in Germany, Medvedev has always played, Rublev has always played.
How do you feel about Dan Evans not being handed a wildcard for Queen’s? 🤔
“It seems as if they are going to where they know and not flip-flopping back and forth.”
John Isner, a former Miami Open champion, then chimed in.
The former top 10 star argued that Queen’s, pointing to the seeding of 2024 champion, Tommy Paul.
“I am going to say something. I don’t think Queen’s is that much weaker,” Isner said. “Tommy Paul is the eighth seed at Queen’s!
“I think they [Queen’s and Halle] are kind of comparable.”
Paul is currently ranked 28th on the Tour.
Andrey Rublev, the eighth seed in Halle, is ranked 13th on the circuit.
Who won the first Queen’s Club Men’s Singles title?
Great Britain’s Frederick Rawson became the first champion of the Queen’s Club Men’s Singles when he defeated compatriot George Murray-Hill 6–1, 4–6, 6–2, 6–3 in the 1881 final.
Following Rawson’s triumph, British players won all of the following 23 editions.
Holcombe Ward, from America, became the first non-British player to win the title following the withdrawal of Beals Wright from the 1905 final.
“Wright scratched to Ward for the finals in the singles, thus creating Ward champion of the City of London,” a report from the New York Times read.
Anthony Wilding, of Australia, became the second non-British player to win the title in 1907.
He went on to win four titles at the event, the last being in 1912.