Carlos Alcaraz believes Sunday’s straight-sets loss in Monte-Carlo came down to one key factor: Jannik Sinner outplayed him from the baseline—particularly in backhand-to-backhand exchanges.
Speaking to reporters after the final, Alcaraz readily agreed with that assessment.
“100 percent,” he said. “On clay, the serve can help at times, but overall it’s about what happens from the baseline.”
Sinner landed just 51 percent of his first serves, but was more effective behind both deliveries. The Italian won 66 percent of his first-serve points (compared to 58 percent for Alcaraz) and 65 percent of his second-serve points (compared to 56 percent).
“I think he won the match from the baseline,” Alcaraz said. “From backhand to backhand, he was just much better. Especially in the first set, we played a lot of those rallies and I felt he was in a better position to attack than me.
“He just handled that side better. He struck the ball cleaner, and yeah, I’d say he controlled things from the baseline.”
According to The Athletic’s James Hansen, Sinner also did an excellent job of breaking out of those patterns and leaning on his forehand. He struck 117 forehands to Alcaraz’s 98, while hitting just 80 backhands compared to 112 for the Spaniard.
Alcaraz added that Sinner’s serve proved decisive in the biggest moments, particularly in the first-set tiebreak.
“The percentage wasn’t that high,” Alcaraz said. “But when it mattered, he made the first serve. In the tiebreak, he didn’t miss a first serve, and I barely got returns in play.
“When it matters, he finds the first serve, that’s why he’s so difficult to break.”
Alcaraz Plans Full Clay Swing
The 22-year-old said he intends to play a full clay-court schedule in the lead-up to Roland-Garros, including Barcelona, Madrid and Rome—though he acknowledged that flexibility will be key.
“The main goal is to play the full clay season,” he said. “We’ll see how it goes. That was the goal last year as well, but I had to skip Madrid because of injury.
“I’m going to listen to my body much better this year. If I need to skip a tournament, I will. I’ll do whatever it takes to stay healthy. If everything goes well, I’ll play the full clay swing.”
Alcaraz admitted there are still plenty of unknowns as the grind of the clay season begins.
“I don’t know how it’s going to go,” he said. “Whether I win matches, lose early, or how physical the matches will be. We’ll just have to see.”