Carlos Alcaraz lost surprisingly to Gaël Monfils in the second round at the Cincinnati Open, then erupted in frustration. In front of stunned onlookers, an angry Alcaraz pounded his racket onto the court time and again, bending its frame.
The incident occurred as Monfils nailed down a break in the third set, and finished the world No. 21 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 on Friday.
Following the match, Alcaraz spoke about his conduct in an Instagram post on Saturday.
“I want to apologize for my behavior yesterday; that was unacceptable and shouldn’t happen during a game,” the world No. 3 said.
“I’m human, and that’s a lot of nerves piled up. It’s hard to be in control with pressure like that all the time. I will improve my control. Now, it’s back to New York!
In the post-match press conference, he described his reaction as a quick loss of control within what he termed “the worst match I’ve ever played.” He told reporters, “There were moments when I felt like breaking my racket. It had never happened before because I usually manage my emotions in such situations. Most of the time, I can keep my composure, which positively impacts my performance.”.
“Today, I couldn’t handle my emotions,” Alcaraz continued. “I was feeling like I was playing no type of tennis. All players have those moments where you lose control, and this was one of those moments of mine.”
Monfils sealed his first win over a top-three player since March 2022, when he beat Daniil Medvedev at Indian Wells. The Frenchman celebrated with glee as the crowd took a standing ovation.
Alcaraz had a very promising start; it really did look as if he was going to come through in a bruising encounter. After rain intervened on Thursday night in the second-set tiebreak with the four-time Grand Slam champion 6-4, 6-6 (1-3) ahead, Monfils won the second set when play resumed Friday, going on to take the final set, saving all four break points against him.
“It was very tough for me. I think it’s the worst match I played,” Alcaraz reflected afterwards. “I was feeling great before the match, the warm-up was great, but it was completely different on the court. I couldn’t control my serve making the match impossible to win”.
Later that day, Monfils returned to court for his third-round match against Holger Rune but lost 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
