"Other players have developed and Carlos Alcaraz hasn't" - Boris Becker on Spaniard's title drought after Wimbledon triumph

Boris Becker has suggested that Carlos Alcaraz's apparent lack of progress compared to his competitors is a key factor contributing to his title drought since winning the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.

Alcaraz has had a successful 2023 season, finishing the year as the World No. 2 with six titles under his belt, including his maiden Wimbledon title. His exceptional triumph over Novak Djokovic in the final at SW19 hinted at a promising latter half of the season.

However, a series of underwhelming results prevented him from adding to his title count, leading to him conceding the year-end World No. 1 ranking to Djokovic. The Spaniard ended his season with a defeat to the Serb in the semifinals of the ATP Finals.

Boris Becker shared his insights on the 20-year-old's decline in performance. He emphasized that after battling Djokovic, clinching the World No. 1 ranking and winning his maiden Wimbledon title, the difficulty for Carlos Alcaraz lay in sustaining that exceptional level over time.

"Why is that? Duelling with Djokovic, becoming No. 1 in the world and winning Wimbledon for the first time - maintaining this level is the most difficult thing in tennis. Anyone can have a good tournament or a good year from time to time, but maintaining that level over the years is the real challenge," he said (via Eurosport).

Becker further contended that while other players improved their game and adapted to playing against the two-time Grand Slam champion, the Spaniard appeared to have stagnated.

"My favorite saying in this context is: 'The locker room never sleeps'. It means that the other players have realized how you have to play against Alcaraz to have a chance against him. That's what happened. Other players have developed and Alcaraz hasn't," he added.

"I'm convinced that we'll see a very strong Carlos Alcaraz at Australian Open 2024" - Boris Becker

Carlos Alcaraz

Boris Becker lavished praise on Carlos Alcaraz's dynamic playing style but also acknowledged that other players have figured out how to counter it. However, he expressed confidence that the Spaniard and his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero would work on introducing new elements to his game during the off-season.

"He continues to play fantastic tennis. I love watching him play tennis at its best with his footwork, his variation, his serve and his forehand. But the top players have adapted to this and know how to counter it. I'm convinced that Alcaraz will now train something new or different with Juan Carlos Ferrero in the winter and improve," he said.

The German stressed that their goal would be to enhance the two-time Grand Slam champion's strengths, stating that he expected Alcaraz to deliver a strong performance at the 2024 Australian Open.

"Their task is to further develop his strengths. And I'm also convinced that we'll see a very strong Carlos Alcaraz at the Australian Open 2024," he added.