MY ACCOUNT
Carlos Alcaraz does not believe he should be considered among the favourites to win Wimbledon given his lack of experience playing on grass.
The teenage Spaniard is enjoying a breakout season, having won a pair of ATP Masters 1000 titles in Miami and Madrid and picked up further silverware in Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona.
Alcaraz has been seeded fifth for just his second main-draw appearance at Wimbledon. Last year, he beat Yasutaka Uchiyama in five sets before falling to a straight-sets defeat against Daniil Medvedev.
They are Alcaraz’s only ATP Tour-level matches on grass, so his main focus heading to the All England Club is to simply improve his feel for the surface.
“I don’t mind being in the spotlight, I don’t see it as pressure, but I’ve seen that I’m considered one of the favourites for Wimbledon. I don’t see it that way at all,” Alcaraz told the Spanish media.
“There are many players who play better than me on grass. [Novak] Djokovic, Rafa [Rafael Nadal], [Matteo] Berrettini… We are going to try to gain experience on this surface.
“Knowing how to move well on grass is very important. I think it’s the key to being able to get good results. We’re trying to improve in mobility and the small details that are more important on this surface.
“Being more aggressive, trying to take advantage of the fact that I volley well – those things.”
Alcaraz is playing an exhibition tournament at Hurlingham this week and lost his opening match against Frances Tiafoe 6-4 6-2 on Thursday.
The world number seven has been struggling with an elbow issue, but experienced no discomfort during his defeat.
“A week ago, I couldn’t train at all,” he added. “I came here unsure if I was going to be able to play normally.
“The days I’ve been able to train I’ve felt quite well – zero pain in the elbow – and today there was no pain in the match with Tiafoe.”
