Carlos Alcaraz said he was having mental difficulties after his shocking US Open elimination, but Rafael Nadal doesn’t think the 21-year-old lacks mental toughness.
On Friday, Botic van de Zandschulp defeated Alcaraz in straight sets to advance to the third round of the competition, sending him hurtling out.
When the Spaniard revealed following the loss that he was mentally ill, it raised some red flags.
Alcaraz talked about it and said: “The truth is that what I feel right now is that instead of taking steps forward, I’ve taken steps back in terms of my head and I don’t understand why. Because I came from a spectacular summer, from Roland Garros, from Wimbledon, coming out of there saying that mentally I had taken a step forward like I had realised that to win big things or Grand Slams you had to be mentally tough. I come to this tour and it’s like I’ve taken steps back. It’s like I’m not well mentally. I’m not well, I’m not strong.”
However, Nadal disagrees with those remarks, believing Alcaraz only needs some time to relax. Earlier in the summer, the two played doubles at the Olympics in Paris.
Nadal expressed his thoughts about it and said: “I don’t think Carlos is mentally not strong. What he is is a little bit tired and saturated by everything he has achieved this summer, winning Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the silver in Paris. There is a certain moment when the mind also needs a little rest because in an Olympic year the calendar is even tighter and the demands are very high.”
Carlos Alcaraz in 2024
Ranked no.3, the Spaniard played his last match on the 29th of August when he was defeated by world no.74 Botic Van De Zandschulp 6-1 7-5 6-4
in the 2nd round of the U.S. Open (draw).Until now, during this year the Spaniard achieved a 39-9 record. Alcaraz conquered 3 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open and Wimbledon. The Spaniard reached the final in Paris.
Carlos Alcaraz will come up against the world no.354 Gabi Adrian Boitan in the . In the past, they have never competed against each other up to now in top tournaments.
Carlos has won 3 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open and Wimbledon. The Spaniard reached the final in Paris (Olympics).
Alcaraz won 16 titles in his career: 4 on hard courts, 8 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 3 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Rafael Nadal in 2024
Ranked no.154, Nadal played his last match on the 29th of July when he lost to world no.2 Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (draw).
Currently, during this year Nadal has achieved a 12-7 match record. Rafael Nadal’s most significant result of this year was getting to the final in Bastad.
Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal squared off 3 times. Their record is 2-1 for Nadal. The last time they competed against each other, Carlos Alcaraz won 6-2 1-6 6-3 in the quarter in Madrid (Mutua Madrid Open) in May 2022.
You can watch the highlights in the following video.
Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal |
| Embed from Getty Images |