Carlos Alcaraz has stormed into the third round of the Australian Open after beating Yannick Hanfmann 7-6(7-4), 6-3, 6-2.
Similarly, Alcaraz beat Adam Walton in his first round match at the hard-court Grand Slam, triumphing 6-3, 7-6(7-2), 6-2.
He will now take on 32nd seed Corentin Moutet in the third round of the Australian Open, the only Grand Slam he has yet to win.
Alcaraz has been backed to complete the career Grand Slam, which would make him the youngest man to achieve the feat.
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Carlos Alcaraz’s team told him he played well against Yannick Hanfmann
Assessing his latest display, ATP number one Alcaraz said: “Well, obviously, I didn’t see myself playing that good.
“But then talking to my team, I realized that I played better than I thought, which I think is great. But, obviously, I’m still getting used to the conditions, getting used to playing better.
“Obviously I think in front of me, I just played against a great player today. But just happy that I’m just improving every day after every match. So hopefully being better in the next round.”
The world number one took two hours and 45 minutes to dispatch his German opponent, during which he hit 12 aces and three double faults, with 41 winners and 30 unforced errors.
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Carlos Alcaraz grateful for his team at the Australian Open
Alcaraz clearly received a nice surprise from his team, which is, of course, without his former long-standing coach.
Juan Carlos Ferrero and Alcaraz parted ways in the off-season, but so far the young star is impressing without his old mentor.
When asked if it’s common that his team tells him that he played better than he initially thought, Alcaraz said: “Well, I mean, as I said many times, I think when you are on court you cannot see the right thing sometimes.
“So you’re stuck in the negative thoughts or negative things. You don’t see the global or the whole thing.
“When you’re watching the match from outside, everything is more clear. The feeling of how I felt on court, that means that’s why I said that I didn’t feel that good.
“But obviously it is because of Yannick that he played, or he played great shots, that he didn’t let me feel comfortable on the court. In general, as I said, it’s just about those feelings.
“Those comments with my team after the match helps me a lot in the next round see the things more clear.”
It will certainly be strange for Alcaraz not to have Ferrero by his side, but that is a feeling that will likely fade away with time.
And he definitely won’t be overthinking the decision given what is at stake in Melbourne, where he can etch his name into tennis history.
Roger Federer wants Alcaraz to complete the career Slam, a feat the Swiss star achieved at the 2009 French Open.
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