Carlos Alcaraz ‘has to start learning tennis is from January to November’ claims coach Juan Carlos Ferrero
Carlos Alcaraz has been offered advice by his Grand Slam winning coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, who has suggested that the ‘very emotional’ Spaniard still needs to ‘improve a lot’.
Alcaraz advanced to the semi-finals of the ATP Finals yesterday in Turin, beating Daniil Medvedev in straight sets to win the ‘Red Group’ and set up a blockbuster match against world No.1 Novak Djokovic.
It hasn’t all been plain sailing for the 20-year-old over the past couple of months, who has struggled with injuries and relative form since winning his maiden Wimbledon title.
And his coach Ferrero has spoken about why this could be, “All the players arrive with excess miles at the end of the year, there are many weeks in which tournaments are played.”
He continued, “And the best take on more matches, more pressure, almost the obligation of having to win in almost every tournament. That excess luggage can weigh more some weeks, and it’s having a bit of an effect on Carlos.
“I think that professionally he has to start learning that the world of tennis is from January to November. He has to take his breaks, but this is a wheel which continues, and it is a job and that’s where you have to be at.”
It was a similar story for Alcaraz last year, with injury causing him to withdraw from the ATP Finals and having to postpone his debut in Turin to 2023.
Ferrero has revealed what he wants his player to improve on, “Be more consistent in matches, don’t open doors. Sometimes there are mistakes and it is something that we have to improve a lot. Although it is true that he opens doors, he always competes well and at the highest level.
“He knows this, the other day he already said that Novak doesn’t give you any [mistakes]. He has to improve his decision-making and he will achieve that with experience. Carlos is very emotional and sometimes that helps him and other times not so much.”
With Alcaraz gearing up to play Djokovic in the semi-final this evening in Turin, he has certainly not held back on his ambitions for the remainder of the tournament.
“I’m dreaming about winning this tournament. Why not?” said Alcaraz. “But I have to play my best in the semi-final tie first. I’m going to face one of the best players in history, and I’m going to face the best player in the world right now. So I will have to put in my best game if I want to beat him.”
Grazie Torino! ❤️ Tomorrow semis against Novak! ? Vamoooos! ?? pic.twitter.com/G1HDf7tSFm
— Carlos Alcaraz (@carlosalcaraz) November 17, 2023
Inside the baseline…
With Alcaraz’s unprecedented success, it is sometimes easy to forget just how young he is and how much all of this is a new experience for the 20-year-old. Although his form has dipped slightly in recent months, it is still relatively impressive and Alcaraz has the opportunity to create more history this week in Turin at the year-end ATP Finals.
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Carlos Alcaraz since Wimbledon
Carlos Alcaraz has nearly lost double the amount of matches since winning Wimbledon than he did in the entirety of the first half of the season, and we at Tennishead wanted to compare his recent form to throughout the rest of 2023:
Alcaraz’s overall win-loss record: 65-11 (86%)
Win-loss record up to and including Wimbledon title: 47-4 (92%)
Win-loss record since winning Wimbledon: 18-7 (72%)
Alcaraz defeats since winning Wimbledon:
Toronto (ATP 1000) – Lost in the quarter-final to Tommy Paul (12), 3-6 6-4 3-6
Cincinnati (ATP 1000) – Lost in the final to Novak Djokovic (2), 7-5 6(7)-7 6(4)-7
US Open (Grand Slam) – Lost in the semi-final to Daniil Medvedev (3), 6(3)-7 1-6 6-3 3-6
Beijing (ATP 500) – Lost in the semi-final to Jannik Sinner (6), 6(4)-7 1-6
Shanghai (ATP 1000) – Lost in the fourth round to Grigor Dimitrov (18), 7-5 2-6 4-6
Paris (ATP 1000) – Lost in the second round to Roman Safiullin (Q), 3-6 4-6
ATP Finals – Lost his first round-robin match to Alexander Zverev (7), 7-6(3) 3-6 4-6
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