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Lehecka, competing in his first grass final, held his own through two tightly contested sets, but Alcaraz showed his class in an inspired deciding-set display to prevail.

“This tournament is really special to me,” Alcaraz said. “I’m just happy to lift the trophy once again. I came without expectation, just to play good tennis and get used to the grass. I [was lucky] to have a lot of friends and family here that made me feel really comfortable on and off the court.”

With his two-hour, eight-minute victory, Alcaraz became just the fifth active man to win four or more grass titles after Novak Djokovic (8), Matteo Berrettini (4), Taylor Fritz (4) and Nicolas Mahut (4). The two-time defending Wimbledon champion will head to SW19 riding an 18-match winning streak, the longest of his career.

Since suffering an opening-round defeat to David Goffin at the ATP Masters 1000 in Miami, Alcaraz has reasserted himself in the sport. Now boasting a 27-1 record since, with titles in Monte-Carlo, Rome, Roland Garros and Queen’s Club, Alcaraz extended his lead over second-placed Jannik Sinner in the ATP Live Race To Turin to 2,240 points.

Alcaraz waited until the championship match to deliver the shot of the week. Trailing 3/4 in the second-set tie-break, he stretched to reach a drop shot and was then pushed back to the baseline by Lehecka before curling a pinpoint lob over the Czech to send the crowd into a frenzy.

While Lehecka did well to regroup and force a decider — helped by an untimely double fault from Alcaraz at 5/5 — he was unable to carry his momentum through. Alcaraz dropped just two of his 18 service points in the final set.

“It’s tough for me to find the words now, but I’m super happy that I had the chance to fight for the title today,”  Lehecka said. “Well done to Carlos and your team for doing a great job. I gave everything I had today and unfortunately it wasn’t enough.”