Carlos Alcaraz on the defeat of Ugo Humbert: 'I gave everything' | ATP Tour

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Alcaraz on Humbert stunner: 'Give me everything'

The Spaniard will next compete at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin

October 31, 2024

A four-time champion in Spanish ATP Tour events, Carlos Alcaraz knows all about raising his profile in front of his home crowd. On Thursday at the Rolex Paris Masters, the No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings saw him possibly on the receiving end of that trend from Ugo Humbert.

“I think I can play better. I think that is obvious. But with the level I had today, I think I'm competitive, I gave it my all,” said Alcaraz in a post-match press conference after his three-set loss to a motivated France in Paris. “I fought until the last point. I have to congratulate Ugo. I think his performance was very high. The way he hits the ball is unbelievable. It's amazing.

“I think every time he plays with me, I feel like he raises his level. He plays a really high level of tennis. I think of Paris even more. So congratulations to him, and good luck.”

Alcaraz admitted that, while he doesn't usually like fast conditions like the ones in Paris-Bercy this year, they don't mean much without an opponent to exploit. Humbert produced a clean, flat hitting performance that had the World No. 2 struggling from the first game.

“[It is difficult] when I play with someone like Ugo it doesn't allow you to find a rhythm in the game,” said Alcaraz who will compete again in the Nitto ATP finals in Turin. “He plays almost all the time at 100 percent, it's really flat. So I couldn't play good tennis.

“I practiced [indoors] at home, but it is not the same court, or speed [of] on the court… So I wasn't surprised about my level, about my game, but I was surprised about everything a little bit.”

Although the on-court battle in the third Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting between Alcaraz and Humbert was exciting, the court decision when the two met on Thursday evening did not disappoint. The packed stadium created a heated atmosphere from the opening match to the final and, although Alcaraz naturally did not receive much support when playing the home favourites, he was full of praise from the French crowd.

“I had a lot of success here in Paris, so I think it's a lot [fans] support me a little… [I was] playing against a French player, one of the best French players France has right now, too [the fans] they were beautiful,” Alcaraz recalled. “I had really good points where they were cheering me on a bit. See [stood] up, hit my points. So I appreciate it, honestly, and the crowd was really respectful. It was a really good game.”