“No chance” – Carlos Alcaraz rules out beating Novak Djokovic to the year-end World No. 1 ranking after Paris Masters exit

According to Carlos Alcaraz, he no longer has a chance to pip Novak Djokovic and finish the 2023 season as the top-ranked men's player.

Alcaraz crashed out of the Paris Masters with an upset loss to Roman Safiullin on Tuesday, October 31. Since the Wimbledon Championships in July, the Spaniard has failed to win a single title.

Despite early breaks in both sets on Tuesday, Alcaraz was unable to maintain his level, which allowed Safiullin to gain control. The Russian performed better at the net, winning nine out of 10 points he moved forward for. He broke Alcaraz four times to secure a 6-3, 6-4 win and set up an all-Russian Round of 16 clash with Karen Khachanov.

Alcaraz was understandably dejected after the loss, as evident in his post-match interview. The Spaniard is currently in second place, with 8,625 points to his name. Novak Djokovic, on the other hand, has 11,045 points.

"After this defeat I have no chance, all the ones I had to finish No. 1 at the end of the year are gone. We're not going to think that, I think there are zero chances," he said in an interview with Marca. (translated)

The 20-year-old also said he wants to avoid thinking about preparing for his next tournament.

"Losing in the early rounds of tournaments that you hope to make it to the final rounds or that you push yourself hurts," he said. "Today is one of the few times I don't want to think about the next few days, about training. But it has to be done, there's one tournament left. But these defeats hurt a lot."

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Carlos Alcaraz: "I have lacked a lot, I've felt sluggish"

Carlos Alcaraz during a press conference.

During the interview, Carlos Alcaraz revealed that he was feeling low on energy and that he was not up to the mark physically.

"My tennis requires a high physical level, but mobility, speed, I have lacked a lot, I've felt sluggish," the Spaniard said.

Alcaraz added that he would take some time before starting to work on improving his level.

"There are many days of training left to get to the level I want, but right now I don't have the mood to talk about it. After this defeat [to Roman Safiullin] I have to take some distance before talking about the future and what I have to do," he said.

Carlos Alcaraz is next scheduled to compete at the ATP Finals, starting on November 12, 2023.