By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday 12 November 2024
Carlos Alcaraz hopes he can get healthy in time to make an impact at this year’s ATP Finals, and his quest begins tomorrow with a second-round match with Andrey Rublev in Turin.
A 6-1, 7-5 loser to Casper Ruud in his first match at the ATP Finals, Alcaraz admitted afterwards that he wasn’t feeling 100 per cent.
“A few days before I came here, I got sick at home,” he said. “And yes, the days I was practicing here, I felt good. Not great, but okay. I could play. I could feel that I could get into rallies in practice. Of course, in the match it is completely different.
“But today I didn’t feel well. This morning, I feel sick to my stomach. After the long rallies today, I wasn’t feeling well. I don’t want to say because I don’t want to sound like an excuse. But if I feel bad, I feel bad. That’s what happened today.”
In addition to illness, Alcaraz is battling several other issues. First, he has the fatigue of another long season in a pressure-packed Olympic year that has seen him compete in 64 games, with more to come.
“I dare say every player is mentally tired,” he said on Monday. “If someone says it’s fresh, they’re lying. Some players handle it better than others. i’m tired I am mentally exhausted. Obviously, a lot of games, a really busy schedule, a really tough year with not many days off.”
Alcaraz is simply expressing the reality of the tournament – it’s a fight for any player to take their place at the ATP Finals this week, not just him. Alcaraz, still only 21, says he needs to learn about his body and how to better manage fatigue.
“Since the beginning of the year, you have been accumulating hours, days. You go into this part of the year tired,” he said. “As I’ve said many, many times, I think this year I’m a lot better than last year, but I have to find a way to perform and play good tennis (while) being mentally tired,” he said.
Alcaraz also admits he needs to become a better indoor player. He is 23-11 lifetime under one roof with zero titles, compared to 184-44 outdoors and 16 titles. Meanwhile, his main rival Jannik Sinner is 68-21 indoors with six titles.
“I don’t think I’m a bad indoor player,” Alcaraz said. “For sure I will say that many players are better than me on the closed court.
“I’ll be a really good indoor player, I’m sure of that. But I think it’s time, to gain experience, to get matches on the back, to hit on closed courts.”
