Jacob Fearnley dished out another French lesson as he reached a first career ATP Tour-level quarter-final at Queen’s Club.

The British number two beat volatile qualifier Corentin Moutet 6-3 2-6 6-2 at the HSBC Championships.

In doing so, Fearnley extended his remarkable, perfect record against French players to 17 wins from 17 matches.

He said: “I’m very happy to be in my first quarter-final, it’s even better to do it here in the UK. It’s really special for me, I’ve dreamed of these moments since I was a young boy.

“I tried to stick to my game plan and be aggressive. I did that better in the third set and the result speaks for itself.”

Fearnley wrapped up a controlled first set with a double-ace finish, while madcap Moutet got a ticking-off from umpire Adel Nour for chucking his racket.

However, the momentum shifted quickly when three double-faults from the home player gave Moutet an early break in the second.

But Fearnley reset well in the decider, breaking Moutet with a backhand winner down the line, prompting the fiery 26-year-old to whack a ball high over the stands and earn a long-overdue warning from the chair.

A diving backhand volley secured a double break and Fearnley kept his head as Moutet lost his – bickering with the umpire and the crowd – to wrap up victory in just over two hours.

Fearnley will play a fellow 23-year-old, Czech world number 30 Jiri Lehecka, in the last eight.

Top seed and 2023 winner Carlos Alcaraz escaped from being a break down in a deciding set to win the all-Spanish clash with Jaume Munar.

The five-time grand slam champion, 22, squandered two match points in a second-set tie-break and then fell 4-2 behind in the third.

But on the hottest day of the year, with temperatures hitting 32C in west London, Alcaraz kept his cool to win 6-4 6-7 (7) 7-5 after three hours and 23 energy-sapping minutes.

It was two hours shorter than his five-set French Open final win over Jannik Sinner earlier this month, and Alcaraz wrote on the TV camera lens “Were we on clay?”

After a 15th straight win, the longest winning run of his career so far, a near-exhausted Alcaraz admitted: “It was a really tough battle.

“He’s a great competitor. I’m proud of how I played today. I struggled mentally and physically. Very proud and happy to give myself another chance to be in the quarter-final.”