A fresh trim for a fresh swing is Carlos Alcaraz's mantra ahead of his return to the clay courts of Europe.
Alcaraz recently competed on the hard courts of the United States in the famous Sunshine Swing in Indian Wells and Miami. Despite a crisis of confidence and a setback in his preparation after picking up an ankle injury, he ended up winning the first leg of the spring season.
The Spaniard defeated Daniil Medvedev in a rematch of the 2023 Indian Wells final to end his near eight-month title drought. The result helped Alcaraz retain World No. 2 for only a fortnight.
In Miami, he lost in the quarterfinal stage to an inspired Grigor Dimitrov. It meant Alcaraz was not in control of his own destiny and dropped to his lowest ranking in two years following Jannik Sinner's success in the final.
But that will only motivate the 20-year-old to yearn more during the European clay swing, which began on April 1st, the same day when Alcaraz was pranked by his racket sponsor Babolat on a ball-hitting challenge.
Alcaraz is signed up to play at this year's Monte-Carlo Masters along with other top-ranked players like Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev, and his childhood idol Rafael Nadal, who is returning from a hip injury.
And the two-time Grand Slam champion will arrive at the Principality with a fresh haircut, which was revealed by his barber, Victor, who shared it on his Instagram stories and tagged his countryman with the caption, "Ready to Monte-Carlo @carlitosalcarazz"
The haircut is not different from some of Alcaraz's previous trims, but it does have a unique taste, with a buzz-cut on the sides. Victor, who is based in Murcia, flaunted Alcaraz's new style while videotaping him.
Alcaraz is defending plenty of points during the clay swing, with title defenses in Barcelona and Madrid coming up. The big question is whether he can return to the top two, given Jannik Sinner's irresistible form.
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