Carlos Alcaraz didn't have the best of weeks at the 2023 ATP Finals in Turin despite making the semi-finals, but he's going to be dangerous in Melbourne, according to Andy Roddick.
Alcaraz played a solid event in Turin but was far from his best. That's the most scary bit about it: he was able to make the semi-finals against the tennis elite despite not playing his best.
The surface didn't really play into his strengths, but according to former ATP world no. 1 Andy Roddick, that will be the case at the 2024 Australian Open in Melbourne.
It's going to be a very interesting showdown between Novak Djokovic and Alcaraz Down Under, as the Spaniard missed last year's event due to injury.
We could get some epic match between the two, which we've been missing for a while. Their match in Turin disappointed greatly as Alcaraz couldn't really do anything against his opponent. Speaking about the upcoming Alcaraz's season for Betway, Roddick said:
This week wasn’t the best surface for Alcaraz, but the round-robin format was great for him leading into next year. He was on a three-match losing streak after losing the first match and battled back with two really good wins to steady the ship. If, at the start of the year, you’d have said, “Hey, listen, you’re going to win Wimbledon,” then I think he takes that without even hearing the rest.
Roddick says that despite not having an ideal season, Alcaraz is certainly happy about winning at Wimbledon, and heading into the 2024, he has a lot to look forward to.
There were some bumps in the road towards the end of the year – and maybe he learned some lessons about fitness and timelines at Roland Garros – but, all in all, what a season it’s been for him.
The former American player reminds that the Spaniard didn't get to play the Australian Open in 2023, and adds that the surface may actually play into his powers.
People forget he didn’t play Australia last year because of injury, so he has no points to defend until February. Australia will be a very good surface for him, especially if it gets hot down there. I’m curious to see how that heavy ball he hits, if it gets really warm, is going to jump off that surface.
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