LONDON: 12 months ago, Jiri Lehecka was forced to watch the grass season unfold from the sidelines.
A back injury forced the 23-year-old out of action for three-and-a-half months between April and August 2024. It was a frustrating situation for Lehecka, who reached the semi-finals of the Madrid Masters shortly before the hiatus took place. Since returning, he won a title in January at the Brisbane International and reached the final of two other events. The most recent of those being on the grass at Queen’s, where he scored high-profile wins over Alex de Minaur and Jack Draper.
Although it is at The All England Club where Lehecka is feeling extra motivated to perform after missing last year’s edition. On Monday, he began his campaign by beating Bolivia’s Hugo Dellien 4-6, 6-2, 6-2, 7-6(0).
“I feel extra motivation, that’s for sure,” Lehecka said afterwards.
“Last year, when I was forced to miss the grass court season, it was not easy for me because it’s just one month out of the whole year.
“I was very sad that I didn’t have the chance to compete on grass because it’s something special.
“You know how much effort it takes to create a good grass court. It’s not like clay or hard court. It really takes time and precision to create a good, good court.”
Lehecka, who is seeded 23rd in the draw, can be a threat to the top guns if he is at his best. He has already recorded seven wins over top 20 players across three different surfaces since January. His biggest scalp was against Carlos Alcaraz at the Doha Open.
“You enjoy the game in a different way than in the rest of the tournaments,” he said of playing at Wimbledon.
“I didn’t know what to expect this year because it’s been two years since the last time I played on grass, but I was just trying to focus on what I was doing.”
The Czech contingent
Lehecka is one of three seeded Czech players in the men’s draw. The others are Tomas Machac (21) and Jakub Mensik (15). To put this into perspective, between 2018 and 2024, there were no seeded Czech players in any men’s tournament at Wimbledon.
As to what is behind the Czech resurgence, Lehecka admits part of it is the rivalry between him and his compatriots. Although he admits it is a very light-hearted one.
“We are motivating ourselves,” he explains.
“I think that it’s very important for all of us to see each other doing well. The most important thing for us is that we are pushing each other forward to the top.”
It is for this reason that Lehecka isn’t too fixated on the idea of becoming the highest-ranked player from his country. For him, the key task is focusing on his progression and not watching how his compatriots are doing in the standings.
“Everyone is always asking us how it feels to be number one or 2, or 3 (Czech). In my opinion, I would rather be number three and in the top ten than be number one, being ranked 80 in the world.” Lehecka commented.
“That’s something I feel that we all are seeing in the same way. We all feel that this is the right way, how to do it, how to motivate ourselves. I feel that there is nothing wrong with it.
“I think that it’s an absolutely healthy way.
“Even towards the Davis Cup, it’s a great message for all the Czech fans and also for the team that we are three good singles players who can also do well in doubles.”
Lehecka will play Italy’s Mattia Bellucci in the second round at Wimbledon on Wednesday. He is the second-highest-ranked player remaining in his section of the draw after Frances Tiafoe. Somebody he could face in the last 32.
