"All that flirting with Novak Djokovic has made Carlos Alcaraz soft" - Fans disappointed by Spaniard's comments on Australian Open loss to Serb

Carlos Alcaraz’s journey at the 2025 Australian Open came to an unexpected end after a quarterfinal defeat to Novak Djokovic. The World No. 3 couldn’t get past the Serb, who now leads their head-to-head record with five wins to Alcaraz’s three.

Alcaraz gave it his all in the Australian Open quarterfinals on Tuesday, January 21, at Rod Laver Arena. He started strong, taking the first set, but ultimately fell to the Serbi 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 4-6.

During a recent press conference at Rotterdam, Alcaraz reflected on his loss to the 37-year-old Serb. Speaking about the defeat, he said:

“I don’t feel that I missed an opportunity. If everything goes well, I’m going to play the AO for the next 10-15 years. I played against someone who played unbelievable tennis. Facing him in QF of a slam is the worst thing.”

Fans didn’t take the statement well and were quick to voice their disappointment in the Spaniard. Many criticized Alcaraz harshly, flooding X (formerly Twitter) with posts expressing their frustration over his comments. One fan even called him “f**king weird”.

“Here yall go being f**king WEIRD”

Another wrote:

“All that flirting with Djokovic has made him soft in their matchups”

Some even claimed that Alcaraz might have picked up this losing mindset from his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero.

“Ferrero has had this defeatist “accepting” mindset in interviews for years. He calls it being mature, which explains his own career. He was saying Carlos is too ambitious. I guess the mindset finally passed on to Alcaraz. Shame,” one commented.

“Feels like Djokovic has softened him up with sweet talking. He doesn't look as ruthless as he did a few years back. His mentality shift has made him weaker. Needs to stop respecting his opponents too much if he wants to get back to winning ways.” another wrote.

One fan urged the Spaniard to "wise up," calling him "naive" for falling for Djokovic's tricks during the match.

“You need to wise up to Novak. You fall for his gimmicks all the time. You are naive! Wise up!”

One even called him "dumb" and wrote:

“I mean, come on! Carlos Alcaraz may be a pretty good tennis player, but he is as dumb as a boxer barber hair.”

Carlos Alcaraz to play in Rotterdam Open

ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament Day 1 - Source: Getty

After an unexpected early exit from the Australian Open, Carlos Alcaraz is set to make his return at the ABN AMRO Open, a prestigious ATP 500 tournament played on indoor hard courts in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Top-seeded Alcaraz will meet Dutch player Botic van de Zandschulp in his opening round on Wednesday, February 5. The tournament is set to take place from February 1 to February 9, 2025.