"It's just a matter of time before he wins many Grand Slams, I don't think we've seen many teenage men have that attitude" - Chris Evert on Carlos Alcaraz
Eighteen-time Grand Slam champion Chris Evert was impressed by the maturity and confidence shown by Carlos Alcaraz in his five-set win over Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the second round of the French Open on Wednesday.
The 19-year-old saved a match point in the fourth set and fought hard to register a 6-1, 6-7(7), 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-4 victory on Court Simonne-Mathieu.
Speaking in an interview for Eurosport, Evert said she admired the Spaniard's confidence and his belief that he'll eventually win a Grand Slam. She added that there are few teenagers with such an attitude.
“What I loved about him is that he is so confident. He really believes in his path and he believes that it's just a matter of time before he wins not one, not two but many Grand Slams! I don't think we have seen many teenage men have that attitude,” Evert said.
Evert asserted that Alcaraz displayed immense maturity to pull off a comeback against a veteran like Ramos-Vinolas. She added that the pressure was now off Alcaraz after winning such a tough match.
“He showed tremendous maturity to pull off that match, that too against a veteran and another Spanish player. This is the type of match that's only going to serve him well because now the pressure is off him a little bit and he can relax,” she added.
It was uncharacteristic of Carlos Alcaraz to have a low break point conversion rate, he normally plays the big points very well: Chris Evert
Despite her high praise of Carlos Alcaraz, Chris Evert also pointed out that the Spaniard needs to improve his break-point conversion rate going forward. The Spaniard won just eight of 31 break-point opportunities against Albert Ramos-Vinolas.
“The only thing I will say critically [of Alcaraz] was the fact that he had so many break points [31] but only won eight of those. And I think that is uncharacteristic of someone like him who plays the big points very, very well,” Chris Evert said.
The match against Ramos-Vinolas mirrored Alcaraz's loss to Sebastian Korda at the Monte-Carlo Masters, where the 19-year-old won only six of 19 break points.
Intriguingly, the teenager’s next opponent at the French Open is Korda, who sailed to the third round after beating Richard Gasquet in straight sets. Tied at 1-1 in the head-to-head, the Spaniard heads into the match as the favorite to reach the fourth round.