"I don't understand" - Boris Becker furious over Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, and others being quizzed over best-of-5 format at Wimbledon

Tennis legend Boris Becker has expressed hos dismay at Carlos Alcaraz and other tennis players being persistently questioned on the best-of-five sets format at Wimbledon. A few players have said that they liked the current format.

Carlos Alcaraz started his 2024 Wimbledon Championships campaign with a win over Mark Lajal 7-6, 7-5, 6-2. During his post-match press conference, a journalist asked him whether the traditional best-of-five sets format in men's Grand Slam should be changed to the best-of-three format.

The 21-year-old said that he preferred the traditional five sets instead of three, as he sees himself as a better player in that format and it provides him with extra time to stage a comeback if he's trailing.

"5 sets. I think it’s more difficult to defeat the big players in 5 sets. I see myself as a really good player in the 5th set. If I have to choose, I’d prefer playing 5 sets rather than 3. Because I feel like I have more time to come back. If I’m 2 sets down or 2 sets to 1 down, I feel like I have more time to come back," Alcaraz said.

Former World No. 1 Boris Becker recently criticized the journalists for repeatedly doubting the Grand Slam format. He wrote that the best-of-five format was essential and compared that the questions were similar to asking soccer players if they preferred shorter matches.

"Don’t really understand,why every player is asked same question…best of 5 is a must for GrandSlams !!! It’s like asking football ⚽️ players whether they prefer to play 45min instead of 90min ! Come on guys !" Borris Becker wrote on X.

Carlos Alcaraz will next face World No. 68 Aleksandar Vukic in the second round of the London Major. The Aussie defeated Sebastian Ofner in a five-set match to advance to the second round.

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Alexander Zverev echoed Carlos Alcaraz's sentiment on the best-of-five format at Wimbledon

Alexander Zverev at the BMW Open

During the pre-tournament press conference, Alexander Zverev also opined that the format for the Grand Slams is perfect as it is and requires no changes. Echoing Carlos Alcaraz's thoughts, the German highlighted the challenges posed by the five-set format in Grand Slam tournaments.

"Tennis is fine, it's one of the oldest sports there is. We don't need new rules all the time, we don't need to invent things every few years. It's a sport that everyone likes . The difficulty of winning a Grand Slam is the five-set matches, the physical part, so you work in the pre-season," Alexander Zverev said (via Punto de Break).

The 27-year-old further emphasized that the five-set format is what distinguishes the Majors from other tournaments.

"Winning a Masters 1000 is very important or the ATP Finals, but the most difficult task in our sport is to win a Grand Slam because of the five-set matches. In my opinion, there's no way to get away from that. That's what makes Wimbledon so special, or Roland Garros. You see the players exhausted, at their limit," he added.

Before Wimbledon, Zverev appeared at the Terra Wortman Open in Halle and reached the semifinals before losing to eventual runner-up Hubert Hurkacz.

The German is seeded fourth at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships and will begin his campaign against Roberto Carballés Baena on Tuesday, July 2.