Carlos Alcaraz appears happy, wrapped in a pink tracksuit and leaning on colored sneakers – green, yellow, red, blue, white – which reflect a state of mind: actually, this time things went well. After two failed debuts in the Turin Masters Cup, the Spaniard smiles, approves of what has been done and is surprised (along with the others) when former player Yelena Vesnina asks him if someone has stolen his heart: “How?” “No, I’m free…” And that same feeling of freedom is the one he expressed shortly before on the pitch, developed against an always difficult rival like Alex de Miñaur: 7-6(5) and 6-2, after 1 hour and 40 minutes. This is a new sensation.
“I’m very happy with my level, because it’s never easy. It’s the first victory on my first day of the Masters Cup and against a difficult opponent on this surface, so I’m happy to have won and how I did it,” he replies. The Australian, the man who has achieved the most victories this season on hard courts, is always difficult to decipher; There are 42, compared to 35 for Alcaraz, who was reluctant to take off in Turin and now contemplates the horizon in a different way, without any relaxation but also without the anguishing demands of mathematics that press upon him. Despite his still short experience in the field, he knows that a stumble at the beginning can be harmful.
The slip at the Paris Masters, where he was eliminated on the first attempt, has disappeared, and now he is decisively approaching this third masterful adventure which he has arrived at with more lungs, fresher from an emotional point of view. If last year and the previous one showed physical and mental tiredness from the continuous effort, from having competed non-stop up to this final stretch, this time he took oxygen by preparing at home. “A bad match can come,” he refers to the Paris setback on October 28. “And in the next tournament you might have some small doubts about how it will be, but I’m training very well. Here are the eight best, play well or they’ll eat you”, he continues.
| Alcaraz in the elite | Matches | Tournaments | Titles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49 | 19 | 1 |
| 2022 | 70 | 18 | 5 |
| 2023 | 77 | 17 | 6 |
| 2024 | 67 | 18 | 4 |
| 2025* | 76* | 16* | 8* |
What happened in 2023 and 2024 is etched in his memory, when he was defeated by Novak Djokovic (in the semifinals) and in the group stage respectively. On that first occasion he made a false start, overtaken by Alexander Zverev, and a year ago he was struck by a severe cold which prevented him from playing fully against Casper Ruud. From the match with De Minaur, however, he obtained a good result – a victory in two sets, an aspect to take into account in case it were to be done later – and also an important injection of confidence, given that in Paris he accelerated too much against Cameron Norrie and against Oceanic he applied moderation: patience, cooking it over a low heat.
Motivation
“Alex is very fast and that’s why it’s difficult to play against him. You have to beat him to the point three or four times each time,” he underlines, specifying that “the track is a little faster” than the French one – although at first sight of intermediate speed – and that every year he interprets the times better. After triumphing in Tokyo (30 September) he chose to forgo Shanghai with the aim of protecting his injured ankle and, at the same time, recharging his batteries in Murcia so as not to arrive saturated in Turin and Bologna (Davis Cup). All the air is short at this point. The oppressive dynamics of the calendar require knowing how to identify moments and find respites within reach.
“It’s a process. It’s about realizing what I need, especially off the court, to be motivated until the end and be aware that the season is very long. At the end of the year you’re tired, but this season I’ve had more time between tournaments, to stay at home, and that’s been great to prepare myself physically and mentally,” he says, two wins away from remaining number one; “This is a tournament that I want to win one day, so I have to do well. This is a great motivation, I’m at a good level and I’m happy and proud of how I reached this part of the season this year.”
Alcaraz has played 76 matches so far, spread across 17 tournaments. In 2024 the number was 67 and in 2023 it was 77, so in two weeks’ time he will have logged his longest journey into the elite. Now, however, things are better. Despite the load, it feels less heavy. “And why not both? Why choose one if I can fight them both?” answers when asked to choose: Masters Cup or Davis Cup. “I will have many years to play in both tournaments and I hope to represent Spain for a long time, but this year I will try to fight for both”, he resolves, without hiding before saying goodbye that the absence of Novak Djokovic, recent champion in Athens, is a relief for him.
Both would have met in the group stage, but the Serbian, 38 years old, 16 years older than him, finished the journey: “And I’m not lying, I prefer Lorenzo to him. He has the experience he has… And in 2023 he killed me here.”
ZVEREV PUNISHES SHELTON
CA | Turin
In the night round, Alexander Zverev beat Ben Shelton 6-3 and 7-6(6), after 1h 33. The German, two-time masters champion, saved three set points in the second set and finally achieved the first victory in Björn Borg’s group. It should be remembered that the opening day offered a duel from every block, just like this Tuesday.
Zverev, who recently left the Paris Masters injured with a sprain, appears to have recovered. He beat rookie Shelton for the fifth time (in as many games), having already been beaten four times this season. The German triumphed in the tournament in 2018 and 2021, and is the one with the most participations (8) in the current edition.
This Tuesday the second match of the group will be played, between Jannik Sinner and Felix Auger-Aliassime (8.30pm, Movistar+). Whoever falls on Wednesday will face Zverev. At the start of the day (2pm) Lorenzo Musetti and Taylor Fritz will measure their strengths, in a fight corresponding to Jimmy Connors’ group, completed by Alcaraz and De Miñaur.
