Carlos Alcaraz has remained defiant and confident after losing to Jiri Lehecka in the Doha quarter-finals.
The Spaniard had a 4-2 and break point lead in the deciding set against Lehecka but Alcaraz went on to lose the match 6-3 3-6 6-4.
It was a big blow for Alcaraz in what has been a fairly underwhelming start to the season as he looks to prepare for a big US hard court swing next month.
Speaking after the match Alcaraz said there isn’t a lot more he could have done and still has faith in his coaches, “I’ve talked with my team, with my coach, and honestly I don’t know what I could have done better,” Alcaraz told the ATP website.
“Probably a few serves, a few points that probably I didn’t play a good point. Honestly, I don’t know. It was kind of a difficult feelings, I guess. I mean, I have to give credit to him as well, because when he was down, especially in the third set, he didn’t give up.
“It was about one point. I think that’s what makes tennis really difficult. One point makes a difference. He was returning pretty well, really aggressively, no mistakes, or almost no mistakes, so that’s what I have to learn. Next time, I just have to keep going when I am up in the match, with serves. But in my mind, I don’t know what I could have done better, and I give credit to him.
“Between them, they have a lot of confidence. Everything they are saying to me it was in the same way. So if they have to say something to me, before they talk between them, then they say just the one thing, so it’s a really solid team.”
After winning the Rotterdam title, it feels like this week has been a step back for Alcaraz as he will hope he can elevate his level over the next week ahead of back-to-back Masters 1000 events in America next week.
Despite the defeat it’s clear that Alcaraz is confident and has every intention to return to the middle east next year, “I love the tournament. I think the tournament is amazing. Everything for the players, I think everything is really easy. The people who work here make this tournament really special,” Alcaraz stated.
“I leave Doha with the head up, with confidence, and really, really happy with everything that I’ve done here and how I felt here with my team. I’m going to come back next year.”
The tournament in Indian Wells will begin on the 5th of March.
