Miami (AFP) – World number one Carlos Alcaraz remained confident his game is improving despite a third-round exit at the Miami Open, and after a few days to reset he’ll be turning his attention to the clay court season.
“Probably I’m going to go back home,” Alcaraz said after falling in three sets to 36th-ranked American Sebastian Korda on Sunday. “Chilling with my family, with my friends a couple of days. I don’t know how much my team are going to allow me to have rest and a day off. The clay season is around the corner. My mind right now is to take some days off, to reset my mind, reset the batteries, be ready and in good shape for the clay season.”
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Korda became the lowest-ranked man to defeat Alcaraz since 55th-ranked David Goffin ousted him in the second round at Miami last year. The Spaniard had built a 73-6 record in the year since then, including a 16-0 run to start 2026 that included an Australian Open title that made the 22-year-old the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam. He added a title in Doha before a semi-final defeat at Indian Wells, and he knows that every lower-ranked player comes out swinging freely against him.
“Obviously when you’re winning tournaments and you have great record win/lose, everything is easier in the way of pressure to the opponents,” he said. “I’m feeling they have more to win than to lose in those matches … they’re playing without pressure.”
Alcaraz is trying to make sure he doesn’t respond by piling pressure on himself. “I’m not thinking about my pressure,” he said. “I don’t feel it at all. I’m trying to play my best.” That includes constant work to improve his game, and despite Sunday’s result he’s confident he’s on the right track.
“I would say what I was practicing, you know, I think I just did it really well,” he said. “Some couple things in previous tournaments that I just didn’t feel comfortable, I think in this tournament, I started to feel better and better. I think the process has been good. Besides the loss today, I think I’m still in the right way.”
© 2024 AFP
