Former American player Sam Querrey reckons Carlos Alcaraz doesn’t have the standard of Big Three – Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal & Roger Federer. Alcaraz has impressed in his young career and he has four Slams in his cabinet.
The Spaniard recently suffered a quarterfinal loss against Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open. Subsequently, Alcaraz won his maiden indoor title at the Rotterdam Open.
But the youngster was knocked out of the Qatar Open after suffering a loss in the quarterfinal clash against Jiri Lehecka. Alcaraz was leading by 4-2, 40-30 in the third set but veered off the track. Querrey said Alcaraz still loses matches which he is expected to win but he doesn’t get over the line when he is not playing at his absolute best.
“Is this just what we’re going to get from him? I mean which is really good but he doesn’t quite have that standard that like Novak Rafa and Roger had where they just don’t have bad losses Alcaraz still seems to throw some some ups and downs in there,” Querrey said on Nothing Major Podcast.
Another former American player Steve Johnson concurred with his compatriot regarding Alcaraz.
“We just haven’t seen with conviction from Alcaraz over the last couple years. I believe that his top end tennis is better than anyone when he is playing his best but his mid-range everyday can fluctuate from time to time,” Johnson said.
Alcaraz, on the other hand, admitted he wasn’t at his best against Jiri Lehecka at the fag end of the third set.
“I have discussed with my team, and I’m unsure what I could have done better. I did not play well in a couple of points on my serve, but the feelings are difficult to express. I must give credit to Jiri – he did not give up while trailing in the decider. One point made the difference. Jiri raised his level at 3-4, playing great tennis. I should have done a bit better, but his game was incredible,” Alcaraz said in a post-match interview.