Carlos Alcaraz admits to ‘screaming and throwing rackets’ in brutally honest message | Tennis | Sport
Carlos Alcaraz is known for his smiley demeanour on the tennis court, with the likes of Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka admitting they take inspiration from his positive attitude to competition. However, the world No. 1 has admitted things were very different when he was younger, and he would “scream and throw rackets”.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion doesn’t always enjoy himself on court. At the recent Miami Open, where he lost in the third round, he was heard telling his team that he wanted to go home. And the reigning champion at the Monte Carlo Masters also found himself in a spot of bother when he faced Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the round of 16, dropping the second set and making too many unforced errors.
However, he regrouped to claim a 6-1 4-6 6-3 victory, and then opened up on his old negative body language during matches. “It’s something that I work on, because when I was younger, I was, like, you know, if I missed a shot, I just scream, I just threw the racket sometimes,” Alcaraz said.
“I [was] just filling my mind with negative thoughts all the time, and probably it lasted one game, two games, negative thoughts in my mind. We realised how important it is to fill the mind with really positive things all the time.
“Even when the things are not going well, or even if you don’t feel the ball well, or you’re missing a lot of shots, as much as you fill your mind with positive thoughts, it’s gonna turn around things quicker.”
Alcaraz has come a long way since his childhood days on the court, but he’s still learning. “That’s something that I’m just working on it,” he added.
“If I miss an easy shot, I try to understand what happened and thinking how I should have done it better, and I’m just thinking about the next point, and I’m trying to do it the whole match. Sometimes it’s really difficult to do it, but it’s something that is on my mind, and it is a goal in every match.”
The world No. 1 might have to channel that in his next match in Monte Carlo, as he faces tricky Kazakh Alexander Bublik for the very first time. World No. 11 Bublik is known for his on-court antics, which often throw opponents off.
Alcaraz has already admitted he doesn’t agree with Bublik’s recent claim that he and Jannik Sinner are unstoppable at the Grand Slams. “I still don’t believe that we are invincible in Grand Slams. But a player like Bublik, he’s top 10, or I think he’s still top 10, saying that, you know, it helps a lot for the confidence,” the top seed admitted.
