Carlos Alcaraz has had the best season of his young career so far and this judgment will not change in relation to his results in recent tournaments, but there is no doubt that his loss to Cameron Norrie on his debut at the Paris Masters 1000 has generated some concern.
The world number 1 – who will be overtaken by his huge rival Jannik Sinner if the latter lifts the trophy in the French capital tomorrow – has never found the right feeling with the surface at the 'Défense Arena', unleashing one of the worst performances of his 2025 as evidenced by the 54 unforced errors made.
The Spanish ace complained several times to his team and equated the surface with that of Monte Carlo, although he himself had praised the organizers' choice to make the course slower than last year. The 22-year-old from Murcia has only given himself one day off after his premature elimination in the last Masters 1000 of the year and has already resumed practicing in indoor conditions, where his game is certainly less effective than in other contexts.
Alcaraz will look ahead to the ATP Finals
Carlos wants to be ready for the start of the Nitto ATP Finals, scheduled in Turin from 9 to 16 November, where he reached the semifinals in 2023 and was eliminated already in the round robin in the 2024 edition. Among Carlitos' goals in the last part of this season, there are also the Davis Cup Finals that will take place in Bologna.
Through his official Instagram profile, top coach Patrick Mouratoglou analyzed Alcaraz's ko in Paris in detail: “Everyone has a bad day, including the champions. The difference is that the champions win. 54 unforced errors for Carlos in three sets is way too much. Everybody has days where nothing works the way you want. Even at the top."
He also added: "I feel if Carlos was in a Grand Slam he would have found a solution because he would have tried a bit more. He kept playing very high risk tennis. On the days back you have to accept the grind. You have to accept to move a bit back, work the point a bit more, and find a way to win ugly.”
