21-year-old Carlos Alcaraz has more than his share of admirers from the past generations. Among the former US greats, 7-time Grand Slam winner John McEnroe is a notable fan of Alcaraz. McEnroe, who is a Eurosport commentary panel member in the French Open 2024, recently lauded Alcaraz after his big win against American, Sebastian Korda in the third round.
Carlos Alcaraz beat Sebastian Korda 6-4, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3. During his match, Alcaraz played some stunning shots, those that would make the audience feel their money’s worth it.
However, this is where John McEnroe differed from the opinion of the majority and believes Carlos Alcaraz might need to get more traditional in order to extend his peak.
“Alcaraz is a unique individual. He’s exciting, the most fun to watch, most athletic, got more game than anyone I’ve ever seen his age. The guy just turned 21, unbelievable that he can do anything,” McEnroe told Eurosport,
“As a matter of fact, because he can do anything, sometimes he tries the extraordinary instead of the high-percentage shot. I think as his career moves along he’ll start to pull back that little bit because he talks about wanting to excite the crowd and give the crowd its money’s worth, and sometimes it may get in the way of winning the match easier than he would normally.”
Carlos Alcaraz entered the tournament with concerns about his fitness. He injured his right forearm during a practice session in Monte Carlo at the start of the clay swing, which could’ve hampered his chances at the French Open. That also made him miss the Italian Open.
However, unbothered by that, Alcaraz still played his usual power game, full of flair and flamboyance. But that stubbornness could cost the 21-year-old in the future according to McEnroe.
McEnroe believes that Alcaraz will need to get wiser as he grows with the game. In the future, winning will be much more important for him than simply entertaining the crowd, which he loves doing.
During his match against Sebastian Korda, Alcaraz smashed a superb slap-style forehand, knowing full well that it was his forehand that has troubled him in the past with several injuries.
Alcaraz is a very exciting player nonetheless and these kind of shots have made pundits like Tim Henman ignore such concerns by being full of praise for him.
Carlos Alcaraz Has Fans For Making No Compromise With His Game
At the start of the French Open 2024, Alcaraz did mention that he would be lying if he said injury concerns have not been bothering him. He was worried about his forehand, but his shots came out just fine.
Even former British player Tim Henman spoke to Eurosport about this matter.
“It [Alcaraz’s forehand] is phenomenal. There’s been a little bit of a question mark about his forearm but there was no question mark about his forehand today. One of the forehands he hit was 162km/h – that’s a joke. That’s as fast as some people serve.”
“His forehand was absolutely brilliant and it wasn’t always the pace, he’s adding spin to the ball as well.”
Well, the good news remains that Carlos Alcaraz seems to be injury-free and he continues to advance deeper into the French Open while enthralling the crowd. Alcaraz also defeated Canada No.1 Felix Auger-Aliassime in straight sets in the fourth round.
However, a sterner test awaits the reigning Wimbledon champion in the quarterfinals as Stefanos Tsitsipas is his next opponent. Tsitsipas has been in good touch in recent times, winning the Monte Carlo Masters and making it to the finals of the Barcelona Open and quarterfinals of the Madrid Open. The match could potentially decide the fate of this year’s French Open.
