Former ATP World No. 2 Alex Corretja tips Carlos Alcaraz to learn from his defeat in the Cincinnati Masters final, akin to what he did at Roland Garros.
Alcaraz fell to Novak Djokovic in a pulsating final last Sunday, coming within a point of winning his fifth Masters title, before it was snatched from his grasp by the indefatigable Serbian. Djokovic leveled the head-to-head 2-2 and has won their first hard-court meeting ahead of the 2023 US Open.
Many people believe that victory could be significant in tipping the scales in Djokovic's favor at this year's US Open, where Alcaraz is set to defend his title. Corretja rebuffs those claims of Djokovic owning a psychological edge in the matchup, stating that as long as Alcaraz committed to the cause - which he did - defeat is unlikely to weigh heavily on his shoulders.
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"I think as long as you give you 100 percent, you always go 'tranquillo' (calm) out of the court. You feel like, ‘Okay, I gave everything I had and I know that I couldn't do anything more’."— Corretja told Eurosport
"Of course, you can do something better at some points because if you go back and watch the match, you might feel like maybe that second set or whatever...but your mind and your soul and your conscious is quiet. It's relaxed because you felt like you gave everything you had."— Corretja told Eurosport
Corretja, who played an integral part in Spain's maiden Davis Cup success in 2000, believes Alcaraz will be undeterred by losing the Cincinnati final and compared to how he managed to bounce back from Roland Garros when cramps got the better of him. But only a few weeks later, he would defeat Djokovic to win the Wimbledon title for the first time.
"I don't think it should affect him because for him it's a perfect final. It's a perfect lesson moment, he learned from Roland Garros semi-final and then he did unbelievable at Wimbledon."
"Now, this is another final with where he knows how to be there with Novak. So I don't think he should go thinking any bad feelings, especially (given) he's going into the tournament where he won last year. He already won another major, which may help him to understand that he can do it again."
Corretja, like many tennis fans and pundits, is completely blown away at the spectacle Djokovic and Alcaraz have served up in their rivalry. It's blossomed into an intergenerational rivalry pitting the old guard against the new generation, and the match has been a yardstick as far as the 2023 season goes.
The 49-year-old retired star is already buying into the frenzy and expects a big battle between them at the US Open should they meet in the final. He broke down the strengths of both players and says any drop in level, even 1% would result in defeat for one of them.
"And it always is going to be tough if one of them doesn't play 100 percent they will fail because if they play 99 percent, it’s not going to be enough."
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