"Unfair" criticism of Carlos Alcaraz called out by Daniil Medvedev's ex-coach
Daniil Medvedev's ex-coach recently delved into the scrutiny Carlos Alcaraz is facing amid his form slump. The Spaniard has established himself as one of the finest talents in tennis at the age of 21, and his performances are constantly making the headlines.
This may be a good thing when Alcaraz is at his best; however, his recent slump in form, albeit by his standards, has become the talk of the tennis town, with many highlighting his inconsistency. The Spaniard has only won the Rotterdam Open this year and failed to defend his BNP Paribas Open. His most recent outing came at the Miami Open, where he was ousted in his opening match.
Amid the criticisms, Daniil Medvedev's ex-coach, Gilles Simon, opened up about how a player of Alcaraz's caliber often ends up becoming the victim of the sporting fraternity's huge expectations during a recent interview.
“The problem with this type of player is that they have a lot of attention, so in the end, every time we have big expectations for them,” he told Tennis365.
“He won four Slams, and it’s crazy at his age. People are tough. It’s unbelievable what he has achieved already, and he will achieve much more than he did. Every time someone like him is losing, we make it a big deal, as he’s supposed to win everything. I don’t believe he’s this kind of person. He is a player where we know what he has in the racket, we know what he is able to do."
He also highlighted that the way the 21-year-old was being treated by the tennis fraternity was 'unfair'.
“Everybody in the end likes him and when he’s not winning, we are disappointed and we put it on him – and I think it’s unfair.”
Simon, however, was confident that Carlos Alcaraz would soon go back to his winning ways. Medvedev ended his partnership with Simon after his shocking second-round loss at the Australian Open.
"What I’m sure about is that Carlos Alcaraz is going to find a way again" - Daniil Medvedev's ex-coach Gilles Simon
Continuing his thoughts, Gilles Simon understood that it's hard to bounce back from a slump, but he was confident in Carlos Alcaraz's abilities to get back to his best eventually. He said (via Tennis365):
“Sometimes, it’s a bit harder, but what I’m sure about is that he’s going to find a way again, and this is where it’s crazy. When he’s going to win, everyone is going to say: ‘He’s back on track’.
He added:
“And the big picture is Carlos Alcaraz is a very special player, he has already achieved amazing things, and he will achieve amazing things again."
Carlos Alcaraz is already looking forward to the European clay swing. The Spaniard will look to defend his French Open title. He is currently ranked fifth in the ATP Finals race and will look to earn some much-needed points during this part of the season.