MIAMI OPEN PRESENTED BY ITAú

March 26, 2023

Carlos Alcaraz

Press Conference

C. ALCARAZ/D. Lajovic

6-0, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: Well done today. Looking ahead to Tuesday, you have a big match against Tommy Paul, who beat you in Canada last year. So maybe Say a few words about that.

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Yeah, today has been a great match, great level. I hope to play at this level on Tuesday.

But, yeah, great, great match ahead. I lost the first and only match that I played against Tommy. I know that he's a really talented and really tough player, so I have to play at my best. Let's see what's going to happen on Tuesday.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. I want to ask you about shot selection. In your view, how do you maintain your aggressive style but also from neutral stay solid and disciplined? As you develop, do you think you'll become a more and more patient player?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Yeah, well, I feel really comfortable to playing both games. When, let's say, my game or I miss a lot being aggressive, I change my game to try to play more solid.

I feel really comfortable movement. I consider myself a really fast player. I try to take advantage of that, you know, to be young, to be fast, try to be solid sometimes. That's what I consider myself, like, really tough player 'cause I mix both games.

Yeah, year by year when I'm growing up, I feel more solid in certain moments.

Q. Carlos, today it looked like it was going to be similar to the previous match and then things got very tight. What happened there? Did you lose a little bit of concentration in the second set, or was there something else?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Well, it was just few points. You know, when I was serving 5-4, yeah, I did a few mistakes that it changed the match, you know. Some backhand that I didn't miss in the whole match.

So probably, yeah, the nerves came out, and probably that was the key, you know, to being, like, close match at the end.

But I stay focused, even it was close. I stayed on my game. I stay focused. I stay concentrated. And that was the key.

But I missed the break point in the 4-2 as well. I didn't take that chance. When you don't take the chances at that level, it becomes tougher.

Q. You were talking about Tommy Paul before. I'm just curious, I don't know how much you've seen of him this year, but if you have, is there anything in particular that you think he has done well that's led to his great results?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Yeah, I watch a lot of matches from him. I enjoy watching him, as I said before. He is really talented player. He makes everything easy. And, yeah, I like to watch these kind of players.

I mean, he is doing everything well. He move well. He is fast. He hits great shots. Big forehand, big backhand. He's going to be really, really tough.

As I said before, I like to play these kind of matches. I like to play battles, tough battles. So it's going to be a really tough one, and, of course, I'm going to enjoy.

Q. Carlos, the crowd is coming out to watch your game. The celebrities are coming out as well. There's lots of articles saying you're the future of tennis and this kind of thing. How do you feel about all of that?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Well, I feel great, you know, to see, like, celebrities watching my matches. It's unbelievable. You know, I feel a little bit nervous when I see a person like Jimmy, celebrities, when I was playing, like, in the US Open. For me it's unbelievable, you know.

In certain ways I can't believe, you know, that these people enjoy watching my matches for me. It's crazy.

Q. Obviously now you've won both Indian Wells and Miami in the past, but with the conditions being so different in terms of speed, I do wonder, do you have a preference?

CARLOS ALCARAZ: Well, I have no preference. I like my game very well in both conditions. I like to play in the conditions like Indian Wells, and I love playing here. So I can't say one.