"Unsure of himself" - Serena Williams' ex-coach worried for 'undisciplined' Carlos Alcaraz after shaky French Open SF start
Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs is worried for Carlos Alcaraz after his shaky start of the 2025 French Open semifinals, where he took on Lorenzo Musetti. After a poor final game, the Spaniard lost the opening set 6-4 to go 0-1 down in shocking start to the clash.
Alcaraz has a 5-1 lead in the head-to-head vs Musetti, and has not lost to the Italian since 2022. They have met twice this year already, with both clashes on clay going to the former World No. 1.
On Friday, however, a strange service game saw him surrender the opener on Court Philippe-Chartrier, with two important unforced errors paving the way for the break of serve.
Taking to social media, Rennae Stubbs called out the "undisciplined" manner in which Alcaraz played, at the same time praising Musetti.
"That was the undisciplined Alcaraz in that last game. Panicking and going for way too much on his FH. 2 very bad UF errors at 0-15 and 15-40. Lorenzo playing solid as a rock!" she said.
Stubbs was also worried that Alcaraz was too tight in the match, unlike his usually joyful self on the court.
"2 volleys on 2 huge points are hurting Carlos too. Backhand volley he normally makes at 3-3 1st point to pressure Musetti on his serve and then in that last game to go 30-30. Obviously super tight and unsure of himself today. No smiling, no vamos," she added.
However, hours later, Carlos Alcaraz went on to wrap up the match in four sets to book his spot in the final of the French Open for the second year in a row.
Lorenzo Musetti retires to send Carlos Alcaraz through to French Open final
After a closely-fought second set that ended in a tiebreaker, Carlos Alcaraz stepped up his level, winning eight straight games before Lorenzo Musetti retired from their semifinal clash at the French Open. The final score read 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-0, 2-0 in favor of the World No. 2.
Up next, Alcaraz will take on either World No. 1 Jannik Sinner or 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the final at Roland Garros. The Spaniard is the defending champ, having taken down Alexander Zverev in the final last year. He is looking to win his second title in Paris, and fifth Grand Slam overall, with two Wimbledon titles and one US Open trophy to his name already.