Carlos Alcaraz makes his position clear on dealing with 'high expectations' for clay season after Monte-Carlo win

Carlos Alcaraz recently shared his thoughts on managing the "high expectations" from the people for the remainder of the clay season following his title win at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters. With his win in Monaco, Alcaraz secured his sixth ATP Masters 1000 title and 18th ATP Tour title overall.

Alcaraz was seeded second at the ATP Masters 1000 claycourt tournament and started his campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. He defeated the likes of Francisco Cerundolo, Daniel Altmaier, Arthur Fils, and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina to reach the final. He staged a comeback against Lorenzo Musetti in the summit clash to win 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 and clinch the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters title.

During the post-match press conference following his victory over Musetti, Carlos Alcaraz talked about the pressure of the "high expectations" he will have to deal with post-Monte Carlo. He acknowledged that coping with such lofty expectations will be "difficult"

"Well, yeah, as I said, it's going to be -- I'm pretty sure that it's going to be difficult months ahead, because, as you said, a lot of people have really high expectations on me, on having a really good clay season. Probably they want me to win almost every tournament, so it's gonna be difficult to deal with it, I guess," Alcaraz said.

The four-time Grand Slam champion also mentioned that he remains focused on his happiness, family, team, and friends rather than dwelling on external expectations. Alcaraz added that maintaining a positive mindset and leaving the court "happy" will enable him to perform at his best.

"But one thing that I learned the last month is I have to think about mysel f. I have to think about myself . I have to just think about my people, my team, my family, my friends, my close friends . No matter what happen on court, if I win, if I lose, I just have to leave the court happy. I'm proud about everything I have done . So that's something that I learned, and I think I did it this week and it paid off," he continued

Carlos Alcaraz said that looking ahead to the remaining claycourt tournaments of the season, he will not think about the fans' expectations and will concentrate solely on his game.

"In the next couple of months in this clay season, I will try to just keep going the same way that I approach this tournament and not think about the people talking about expectation. Just I will hear about my close people and my team have things to say to me, and that's all that matters to me. I will try to approach the clay season like this," Carlos Alcaraz added.

Apart from his title win at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters, Carlos Alcaraz's best results this season include winning the ABN AMRO Open, reaching the semifinals at the Indian Wells Masters, and making quarterfinal appearances at the Australian Open and the Qatar Open.

Where will Carlos Alcaraz next compete on the claycourt swing?

Carlos Alcaraz at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters [Image Source: Getty Images]

Following his title win at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters, Carlos Alcaraz is expected to compete at the Madrid Open, which is scheduled from April 23 to May 4. The matches will be played on the outdoor claycourts at the Park Manzanares in Madrid, Spain.

Last year, at the ATP Masters 1000 claycourt event in Madrid, Alcaraz defeated players like Alexander Shevchenko, Thiago Seyboth Wild, and Jan-Lennard Struff before bowing out to eventual champion Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals.

Carlos Alcaraz has won the Madrid Open twice - in 2022 and 2023. In 2022, he entered the event as the seventh seed and began his run in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. He defeated Nikoloz Basilashvili and Cameron Norrie in the second and third rounds, respectively

In the quarterfinals, the former World No.1 overcame Rafael Nadal and then beat Novak Djokovic in the semifinals to move to the final, where he defeated Alexander Zverev to win the 2022 Madrid Open.

In 2023, Carlos Alcaraz was the top seed, and he defended his title in Madrid by defeating the likes of Emil Ruusuvuori, Grigor Dimitrov, Alexander Zverev, Karen Khachanov, and Borna Coric to advance to the championship match, where he secured his second consecutive title by defeating Jan-Lennard Struff.

About the author

Since joining Sportskeeda as a journalist in January 2023, Sreeja has remained steadfast in delivering thorough coverage of the tennis world. Her bachelor's degree in English has proven invaluable, with over 1000 articles already under her belt for the company.

While writing, Sreeja prioritizes reliability by sourcing information from credible outlets and presenting various perspectives to her readers. She regularly keeps track of updates by closely monitoring the official websites of WTA and ATP, as well as the social media profiles of prominent journalists.

Sreeja draws inspiration from Rafael Nadal's unparalleled dominance on clay courts and Steffi Graf's remarkable career trajectory, while also holding Novak Djokovic in high esteem. Her passion for tennis reaches its peak during the Australian Open and the French Open, particularly relishing the clay court matches.

When she is not collecting information about tennis, she fills her time with reading and playing darts while also keeping her finger on the pulse of pop culture.

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Edited by Samya Majumdar