"I don't understand why they did it" - Carlos Alcaraz complains about Paris Masters courts again after shocking loss to local Ugo Humbert

Carlos Alcaraz has pointed fingers at the 2024 Paris Masters court yet again following his shocking loss to Frenchman Ugo Humbert. The Spaniard questioned the tournament’s decision to have faster courts.

After his 7-5, 6-1 victory against Nicolas Jarry in the opening match, Alcaraz came up short against Humbert 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 in his second fixture at the ongoing Masters 1000 event on Thursday, October 31. This is the Spaniard’s 11th loss of the season.

The defeat comes just days after Carlos Alcaraz expressed that he was “feeling different” about his level at the tournament, having done “great work” in recent times. However, following his first match, the World No. 2 bemoaned the “fast” and supposedly “slippery” courts.

After crashing out, Alcaraz reiterated his distaste for the courts.

"When I played the first match, the stats came out that it is the fastest court in the Masters 1000, probably on the tour right now," he said in his press conference. "This is crazy. I don't know. Probably and the fastest one, you know, in the last ten years in this tournament."

"I don't know why they do it. I don't know why they have changed a lot, you know, a court from other tournaments and obviously in the same tournament, you know, comparing to other years."

The Spaniard opined that he lacked the preparations required to adjust to the conditions.

"So it surprise me a little bit, so I came here with not too many days. Probably I had to come earlier to get used to these conditions but I didn't. But, you know, honestly all I can say is I don't understand why they did it," Carlos Alcaraz said.

---

"Ugo Humbert deserves to win, that's obvious; but it depends" – Carlos Alcaraz on his Paris Masters 2024 loss

Carlos Alcaraz pictured at the 2024 Paris Masters. - Image Source: Getty

Carlos Alcaraz clarified that it wasn’t indoor hardcourts that he was unsettled by, but these particular fast-paced courts at the Paris Masters. The 21-year-old maintained that he didn’t want to give any excuses for his loss.

He also pointed out that he performed well on indoor hardcourts during the 2024 Davis Cup Finals group-stage matches in September, where he beat Ugo Humbert 6-3, 6-3.

"Well, not indoor courts. This court. I mean, I don't want to say something that there is going to sounds an excuse," he said in the aforementioned press conference, when asked if he was bothered by the surface.

"You know, first of all, Ugo deserves to win, that's obvious. But it depends. Because I play, for example, the Davis Cup indoor court, and the court was way slower than this one," he said.

Alcaraz is scheduled to compete at two more indoor hardcourt events – the 2024 ATP Finals (November 10-17) and the Davis Cup Finals (November 19-24). Meanwhile, Humbert is set to battle it out against Jordan Thompson at the 2024 Paris Masters on Friday, November 1. Both players are chasing a spot in the semifinals in hopes of a maiden Masters 1000 glory.