Alcaraz and the key to his defeat: "I was nervous all day"

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Carlos Alcaraz will leave Indian Wells 2025 empty-handed after a disappointing performance in the semifinals. Jack Draper was his executioner in a match that even Carlos himself finds difficult to explain: however, the Murcian engaged in self-criticism and introspection during the press conference, revealing very interesting details whose timeline starts this morning. To understand the ups and downs of his performance, Carlitos talks about nerves that plagued him all day, also during practice... and eventually had a significant impact on his on-court demeanor.

- Match analysis

"The truth is that this defeat hurts. You never want to lose any match, but I think this one was even more special for me. It was tough, there were a lot of nerves. What could I have done better? Simply play my tennis style and step on the court with less nerves. That was the big difference."

- About the video review in the third set play, where Draper ended up winning the point

"It didn't affect me too much, to be honest. At first, I didn't see whether it was one or two bounces, so I just waited for the review. Then, with the second one, I wasn't sure if (Lahyani's call) was during the point or after the hit. I didn't hear anything while striking the ball, I wasn't sure to say anything. Regarding the wait for these reviews, they didn't bother me at all. All I can say is that Jack came out playing much better than me. That point didn't affect my tennis."

- A very tough day for him

"Today was quite tough for me. I didn't train well. I didn't feel good on the court. Even during warm-up, I was making a lot of mistakes. I didn't feel my shots. That's why I spoke with Juan Carlos (Ferrero) for so long on the bike, because I was a bit angry with myself, for how I trained. I didn't approach the match in the best way possible. I was nervous all day, during the pre-match practice, and it affected me on the court."

- What hurts the most about this defeat?

"Obviously, I wanted to win my third consecutive title here, but I can't expect to win every match. That's not what bothers me the most: I'm upset with myself, for how I approached the match, for how I felt all day, for the fact that I couldn't relax. That's the biggest feeling of disappointment I have: I probably played one of the worst sets of my entire career, the first set."

That showed how nervous I was before the match. It's disappointing. How long will I need to recover? Not too long. I consider myself someone who learns from failures, from defeats. The last time I lost here in the semifinals I won in Miami, so I'm going for it. I'm going to learn from this match for Miami."

- Words about Jack Draper

"I don't think he played his best today. I think everyone saw that. It was a match where whoever was better in these conditions would win, and it fell on his side. I remember his withdrawal in Australia: I told him he would soon be where he deserves. He deserves to be top-10, he deserves to play a Masters 1000 final. I had no doubts about his level. He is ready to stay up there for quite a while, ready for the big tournaments. His level today didn't surprise me, it wasn't an easy match for him, facing the top-10 and your first Masters final on the line, he handled the nerves better than me today."

- Why so nervous today?

"I always say that I must focus on myself, on my level. On the contrary, today I was more concerned about his level, his game, than mine. That was a big problem for me, I always thought more about his weaknesses than my strengths. When you think more about the opponent than yourself, it's a problem. That's what happened today. Since the morning, I was thinking about his game because he's a tough, very solid opponent, and it was going to be a physical match. I thought about all this from the start, and it was a big issue."

- An interesting reflection on his current stage

"In this sport, you play all year, there are hardly any breaks. You play like 16, 17, or 18 events a year, almost 80 matches in a season. One of the most challenging things is to maintain a good level during 80 matches, something I aspire to, playing my best tennis in every match, in every tournament. Sometimes I still forget that I'm 21 years old: I must think that I'm still young, that I have many things to improve, and that's one of them. I think I'm improving. I'm getting more mature. I'm getting closer to what I want to be, but I still have moments where I play at a high level, and then my level drops a lot. I have to think about it, keep working, and I hope everything will get better soon."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Alcaraz y la clave de su derrota: "Estuve nervioso todo el día"