Holger Rune sends brutal message to Queen’s rival that left him furious

Alcaraz enjoys unusual cool-down method

Holger Rune hit back at Lorenzo Musetti after the Italian struck the Dane with a smash at the cinch Championships. He said: “I’m in the semi-final; he’s not. So I’m happy.” The No.2 seed won the quarter-final 6-4 7-5 to set up a last four clash with Alex de Minaur.

But the world No.6 was furious when Musetti’s overhead hit him on the shoulder despite the Dane trying to take evasive action. It was a similar flashpoint to when British No.1 Cam Norrie hit Novak Djokovic with a smash at the Rome Masters.

Rune said: “Of course he can do what he wants. I mean, it’s not the best thing to do, for sure. But again, it is legal. He can do what he wants. He can hit the ball where he wants to.

“Yeah, for sure, this just gave me fire in the belly to beat him even more. I’m super happy to manage to beat him in two sets. It feels good. I’m in the semifinal; he’s not. So I’m happy.”

Fiery Rune clashed with Casper Ruud after losing the French Open quarter-final last year when he claimed the Norwegian came up to him and shouted: “Yes” in his face in the locker room.

Rune, 20, had never won a pro match on grass efore this week but has now won three. “I am starting to play better and better,” he said. “I’m extremely happy to be in the first semifinal on grass. It’s going much better. I think today was a good test to see where my level is at, because I was forced to play a lot of long rallies and move well.

“So I’m happy on where I stand right now. It’s going to be harder matches of course from now, but yeah, looking forward to it. I’m feeling better and better.

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British No.1 Katie Boulter was in the Queen’s Club crowd to cheer her boyfriend De Minaur into the semi. The Aussie, who beat Andy Murray in the first round, fought back to beat Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 6-4 4-6 6-4.

“I did my best to hang in there and I got a bit lucky in the end,” said De Minaur. “He’s a great returner. There’s times where he just picks them and laces returns and applies a lot of pressure.

“So what I’m most happy about was the way that I just bounced back. I didn’t let it affect me. I just kind of told myself, well, if I’ve already broken him, why not do it again? That was kind of the mindset. I had lots of chances to lose my head today and I stayed calm. Essentially that’s why I got the win today.”

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