Alcaraz defends his Tokyo title, his first trophy since February
The Murcian beat Jiří Lehečka 7‑6(4), 6‑4 in the final of the Japan Open, back on form after a wrist injury kept him out for four and a half months.
PIPablo Iriarte, science and sport reporter
· 2 min
- Event
- Japan Open, ATP 500
- Final
- Alcaraz bt Lehečka 7‑6(4), 6‑4
- Titles in 2026
- 3 (Australian Open, Doha, Tokyo)
- Record
- 21–0 at ATP 500 level since April 2025
- Region
- Murcia
Sources appear in the margin next to the paragraph they support.
Carlos Alcaraz won the Japan Open in Tokyo on Tuesday, beating the Czech Jiří Lehečka 7‑6(4), 6‑4 in 96 minutes to defend the title he won a year ago. It is his third title of 2026 and his first since Doha in February.13
Alcaraz was broken in the first game of the final and trailed 2‑4 in the first-set tie-break before winning five points in a row. He took the only break of the second set in the seventh game. “I think I played my best match of the week,” he said.12
Back after injury
The world No. 3 returned in late August from a right wrist injury that kept him off the tour for four and a half months, and reached the US Open quarter-finals. He has worn a compression sleeve on his right arm since coming back.3
He is now 21‑0 at ATP 500 level since losing the 2025 Barcelona final to Holger Rune, and the first man to win Tokyo twice in a row since Pete Sampras in 1993 and 1994. Earlier this year he won the Australian Open, his seventh Grand Slam title.13
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Pablo Iriarte is a science and sport reporter based in València. Pablo trained as a physicist, then swapped the lab for a newsroom. He follows Spain's space industry and, at weekends, its tennis players.