Carlos Alcaraz took a swipe at the umpire during his opening match at the China Open after being hit with a duo of violations.
The world No.2 expressed his frustration with the official during the opening set of his 6-4, 6-4, win over France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. Alcaraz was hit with two time violations which are given to players when they take longer than the allotted time between points. However, the four-time Grand Slam champion was not amused by the decision by arguing that it was ‘impossible’ to play in such a scenario.
“This is not tennis,” Alcaraz said at first.
“I’m always very quick, I never get warnings,” he continued. “You gave me two in one set. It’s impossible to play tennis like this.”
Despite his protest, the Spaniard was unsuccessful in having the warnings against him withdrawn. It is not the first time Alcaraz has spoken out about the time players have between points. Earlier this year at The Queen’s Club, he said the trial of using a shot clock at the tournament made him feel ‘rushed’ and vowed to speak with the ATP about the issue.
As for his latest match, the 21-year-old secured victory in China by breaking fast-serving Perricard at the start of each set. Alcaraz is hoping to get back on track in Beijing after losing in the second round of the US Open. Last week, he made his Laver Cup debut where he won a record eight points for Team Europe.
“The plan was just to put as many returns in as I can,” Alcaraz said of his latest win. “Honestly it wasn’t easy. He was serving 230 or 240 [km/h] almost every serve. Second set, 210 or 215. So, it wasn’t easy to play against him. He’s a really powerful player. Big serve, big shots from the baseline. So I had to be really focused. That was the plan. Try to not make too many mistakes and play aggressive from the baseline.”
Alcaraz is now 17-2 against players ranked outside the top 50 this season. He will play Dutch player Tallon Griekspoor in the next round.
