After a phenomenal performance at Roland Garros where he made it to the semifinals and became only the fifth active tennis player to play in the semifinals of all Grand Slam tournaments, Marin Čilić turned to the grassy season. And continued with brilliant games.
The best Croatian tennis player defeated Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik (7-6, 7-5) and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Queen’s Club, even ninth in the tournament he won twice. But what many are talking about is the T-shirt he played in.
He played in a white-blue-red T-shirt, which many associated with the Russian flag. Due to the war in Ukraine, Great Britain banned performances by Russian and Belarusian tennis players. They are not in the Queen’s, and therefore will not play at Wimbledon, which has caused sharp criticism in public. Due to this precedent in the world of tennis, the ATP decided to abolish points.
Marin will play in the semifinals against Finn Emil Ruusuvuori (ATP – 56th). Queen’s won twice, the first time in 2012 when David Nalbandian was disqualified for hitting a line judge, and the last time four years ago when he defeated Novak Djokovic in a great final. The new title would be a wonderful overture to Wimbledon where Marin has great ambitions.