Carlos Alcaraz lost to a player not ranked inside the Top 100 at the Italian Open, leaving many stunned by what happened to a player that looked unbeatable.
Last year Carlos Alcaraz opted to stay in Spain following his triumph in Rome and not play at the Italian Open but this time around he elected to play due to the new extended format which gives players a bit more rest in between matches.
Another reason why he played is to get the number one rank from Djokovic which was guaranteed to happen if he wins his opening rounds which he easily did. The consequences are huge because he will now be the top seed in Paris, something he called great after the shocking loss to a non-top 100-ranked player.
Well, it's great to be the No. 1 seed in a Grand Slam, in Paris. That's a tournament I really want to have a good result there. I try not to think about it. For me it's the same to be No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. Probably the draw is the same in that ranking. It's great, but at the same time, it's not really helpful for me.
While he looked fine after the match, Alcaraz looked very sluggish during the match. The energy was not there and he was rather late on many of his shots. Even with those observations the Spaniard was adamant after the match that fatigue played no factor in the loss claiming to have been perfect physically. That was clearly not the case however he preferred 'not comfortable' instead of fatigued as an explanation.
No, no, no. I was perfect physically. I just didn't feel comfortable. He made me feel uncomfortable on court. I mean, he was aggressive all the time. He was playing inside all the time, the baseline all the time. It was tough for me to get into the match, into the rally. I made a lot of mistakes that I usually don't make too much.
He also shared after the match that he will now go home for a few days to rest up and then resume with practices as the grand slam is only two weeks away. There is some finetuning left to do as he has a goal of winning it.
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