Following a near-perfect start to the season, Carlos Alcaraz was on the receiving end of a huge upset at the Miami Open.
In the third round of the ATP Masters 1000 event, Alcaraz lost to Sebastian Korda in three sets; just his second defeat of the season.
The Spaniard enjoyed a flawless run through his first two tournament appearances on the tour this year, winning both the Australian Open and the Qatar Open.
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After that, however, Alcaraz fell to Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals of Indian Wells, before suffering an early exit in Miami.
Despite the recent results, former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski said he is not worried about the world number one at all.
Greg Rusedski discusses Carlos Alcaraz’s recent results
Speaking in an episode of ‘Off Court with Greg‘, Rusedski said: “I think with Alcaraz, he’s played a little bit too much tennis. You look at the end of the season, he didn’t really have an offseason.
“He played a lot of exhibitions in America, he went to the one in Korea before the Australian Open, then he played in Doha as well.
“So he’s played all the way from the end of the year, finishing number one, to continuing on the merry-go-round.
“And when you play too much tennis, I hate to say it, but you get a little stale, you get a little bit bored, it’s difficult being week in, week out on the road.
“That’s where Federer was a maestro. That’s why he had such a long career and had so much dominance. He’d only played 12 events, and then he’d win seven of them, and he’d be fresh every event he played.
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“For me, Alcaraz has played a few too many exhibitions. I know people put messages in, oh, it’s all about February, it’s not about those exhibitions in December.
“But you need to find periods where you recharge your battery, and no matter how great you are, it’s difficult.
“If you drop by 2–3%, you get into the pack, and guys like Fils, even though he beat him quite easily in Doha, can get in the mix.
“Then you get Medvedev, who beat him in Indian Wells, and then this week, Korda played magnificently, but he was just not sharp enough at the very biggest moments, and it’s those small percentages.
“Am I worried about him? None whatsoever. There’s not a worry for me. He’s going to take some time off, he’s going to be ready to go, and for these big boys, it’s all about winning the four majors.
“So he’s won the first one, he’s still on for the calendar slam, and he wants to defend that, and so I have no worry.”
Carlos Alcaraz’s points to defend in the clay season
With Jannik Sinner reaching the final of the Miami Open, the Italian is beginning to close in on Alcaraz at the top of the rankings.
Alcaraz, who has held the top spot since November, is currently on 13,590 ATP points following his Miami exit, while Sinner has the chance to climb to 12,400 points should he win the final.
For the seven-time major champion, there is not much margin for error at all in the coming weeks in terms of ranking points.
Last year, Alcaraz went on a remarkable run during the clay swing, winning the Monte Carlo Masters, the Italian Open and Roland Garros, as well as reaching the final of Barcelona.
He will be defending a total of 4330 points in the 2026 clay season.
- Monte Carlo Masters: 1000 points to defend
- Barcelona Open: 330 points to defend
- Italian Open: 1000 points to defend
- Roland Garros: 2000 points to defend
Sinner, on the other hand, did not feature in either Monte-Carlo or Barcelona last year, and will have a great chance to eat into Alcaraz’s lead at the top.
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