Former doubles No.1 Paul McNamee spoke about Carlos Alcaraz’s current form ahead of his French Open final against Alexander Zverev. McNamee claimed something wasn't right with the Spaniard's gameplay against Jannik Sinner in Friday's semifinal clash.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner faced off for the ninth time on the ATP Tour, with their head-to-head record being 4-4. However, after 4 hours and 9 minutes, Alcaraz took the lead by defeating the Italian 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
McNamee took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his concern for Alcaraz's form ahead of the final against Alexander Zverev. The 69-year-old said that despite Alcaraz winning the match, his performance wasn't of a high standard compared to that at French Open 2023, where he suffered from cramps before losing to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals.
Trending
McNamee added that something was out of order with the Spaniard's gameplay, particularly his forehand.
“Look Alcaraz won the match, but it was not a particularly high standard…. nothing like the level he displayed all RG last year, until he got cramps v Djokovic. Something is amiss, maybe the arm? He has 2 days to sort out his forehand, which was the King forehand of right handers.” Paul McNamee said
Carlos Alcaraz will play his third Grand Slam final on Sunday, June 9. The Spaniard has a 2-0 record in Major finals so far, having previously won the 2022 US Open and the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.
Alexander Zverev leads Carlos Alcaraz 5-4 in their head-to-head meetings on the ATP Tour so far
Carlos Alcaraz will have a chance in Sunday's French Open final to even the score with Alexander Zverev. The two have competed against each other nine times previously on the ATP Tour, with Zverev winning five of those meetings.
Their first meeting was in the first round of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in 2021, where the German won in straight sets and went on to win the title. Alcaraz secured his first victory against Zverev in the final of the 2022 Madrid Open, clinching his second Masters title. Among their nine encounters, they also met in the quarterfinals of the 2022 French Open, where Zverev won the clash.
The on-court rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Zverev has heated up this season with two encounters. Zverev claimed victory in the Australian Open quarterfinals, but Alcaraz exacted revenge in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
