Carlos Alcaraz’s recent comments should strike fear into the rest of his ATP rivals
Carlos Alcaraz could have an advantage over the rest of his ATP Tour rivals at the Paris Masters and it could help him win the tournament for the first time in his career.
The Spaniard is looking to achieve two firsts in his career by winning the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals before the 2026 season draws to a close.
This period of the season tends to be when players are winding down and dealing with fatigue, after a gruelling 11 months on the ATP Tour calendar.
For Alcaraz, however, he is currently buoyed by back-to-back victories at his last two ATP 500 events at the Japan Open and the Vienna Open.
He has also missed four and a half months of the season, so he is fit and raring to go for the final two ATP Tour tournaments of the season.
Speaking at the Paris Masters, Alcaraz said: “So right now I just have a lot of confidence. Excited, motivated, mentally fresh, physically fresh to overcome every problems that I might have in every match.
“Yeah, trying to deliver a great tennis to feel well on the court and hopefully go as far as I can, you know, in this tournament. I really want to go and and do great.”
Alcaraz will begin his Paris Masters campaign against either Alex Michelsen or Jiri Lehecka in the second round, after receiving a first round bye thanks to his seeding.
The Spaniard will have to win five matches in five days if he wants to win the Paris Masters, as he is set to play his first match on Wedneday, 4th November.
He has been drawn in the same section of the draw as the likes of Arthur Fils, Taylor Fritz, and Ugo Humbert, so he will have some tough matches to try and reach the latter stages of the tournament for the first time in his caeer.
Alcaraz has one quarterfinal appearance under his belt at the Paris Masters from his five appearances so far and he has nearly exclusively suffered early exits at the tournament.
He has won just five matches in five appearances, giving him a very worrying 50% winning rate at the final Masters event on the ATP Tour calendar.
That makes the Paris Masters Alcaraz’s second-worst performing Masters tournament, behind only the Canadian Open, which he has only played twice in his career.
He will be hoping to change that record and claim the title for the first time in his career at the 2026 event.
