Andy Roddick doesn't think that Carlos Alcaraz will be worried about expectations at the US Open following his last year's triumph.
Carlos Alcaraz wants to win trophies, and he's won a couple of them this year. One was especially meaningful as he won his maiden Wimbledon by beating Novak Djokovic in the final. It surprised Alcaraz and many others who could not picture a scenario where the Spaniard would lift the trophy in London.
Andy Roddick was one of those, as he admitted in his BetWay column. He fully expected Djokovic to win Wimbledon and then go for the calendar slam in New York. We've seen that already in 2021, but he didn't get it done, as Medvedev proved too strong.
I assumed we were going to be watching Novak go for the calendar year Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows. If anything, I thought Carlos Alcaraz might sneak one at Roland Garros, and that Novak was a lock to win Wimbledon. I'm curious to see how Novak comes back to it.
The Roland Garros and Wimbledon outcomes were surprising, but many assumed that one would be won by Djokovic and the other by Alcaraz. Nobody expected it to flip the way it did, but here we are.
No calendar Grand Slam for Djokovic, but a possible 24th major. Djokovic recently bested Alcaraz in Cincinnati at the ATP 1000 event, but even so, Roddick doesn't think Alcaraz will feel much pressure, even if he's the defending champion.
I don't think defending a major will affect Alcaraz too much. He might not win it again, but he won’t be coming in worried about expectations. He’s handled everything that's come his way so far, so I don’t think he ticks that way. It’s probably between those two guys on the men's side.
It's likely to come down to their matchup. After seeing the Cincinnati Masters final, fans won't surely mind.
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