Eurosport tennis analyst Barbara Schett doesn't think Carlos Alcaraz is ready to win Wimbledon as long as Novak Djokovic is in the draw.
Carlos Alcaraz will be the top seed at Wimbledon, something that he described as a dream. Does that mean that he'll win Wimbledon? Obviously not, even though there is a chance. His run in Queen's this week proved that his tennis can work on grass and he's certainly in the circle of players capable of winning the event.
Former player Barbara Schett previewed his chances for Eurosport admitting that she does expect Alcaraz to do well but not go all the way. His stock took a beating with the anticlimactic finish at Roland Garros which caused everybody to temper their expectations with him.
Yes, Carlos won the tournament in Queen’s, but we saw what happened with him at the French Open when he started cramping because he was overexcited to play against Novak.
So, I still think maybe not tennis wise but mentally, the approach to play against Novak, he still doesn't have the maturity to play against him because of the preparation, the mindset and everything he's got over Carlos.
Alcaraz lost to Jannik Sinner at last year's Wimbledon; not a terrible loss considering that Sinner himself gave Djokovic quite a bit of trouble a few days after his win over the Spaniard. His level on grass looks even better this year which makes Schett believe that a deep run is likely.
I think he will go deep. I mean, the win in the tournament in Queen’s, that's certainly helped. He played five matches or six matches in Queen’s. But he's watched videos of Roger [Federer] playing in Wimbledon just to learn how to play on that surface. So, I think there's still a lot of work to do.
Alcaraz himself expressed a lot of doubt about beating Djokovic on grass opting for Nick Kyrgios as the more likely player to beat him. His win in Queen's changed his expectations so perhaps he did start to believe. Schett doesn't yet.
I think he can beat everyone else, that's for sure. But you have to be very disciplined on a grass court. Playing in Wimbledon itself it's very different with all the tradition, with all the atmosphere, is very different.
He will not get back anything from the crowd. The crowds are very calm compared to the other Grand Slams. I don't think he's ready to win the Wimbledon title because of Novak Djokovic.