Paul Annacone analyzed in detail the second part of Carlos Alcaraz’s season, indicating the moment in which the Spaniard took a turn for the worse.
The former coach of Roger Federer and Pete Sampras identified the defeat suffered at the Paris Olympics against Novak Djokovic as the turning point of the young Spaniard’s season. Annacone thinks that precise moment was the turning point in the Spaniard’s season. And he was no longer the same player for the rest of the season, as the American coach explained in an interview with Tennis Channel.
“You have to find what motivates you and stick with it. I think Carlos Alcaraz is a joyful player. I think he lost a little bit of that joy this year, for a multitude of reasons. I think only getting a silver medal in Paris, which is a great result but not for him, broke his heart a little bit. And I think that affected the rest of the summer and the season as a whole,” he explained.
Carlos Alcaraz, Davis Cup Finals 2024© Stream screenshot
The 21-year-old four-time Grand Slam champion had a very successful first part of the summer, when he won the French Open and Wimbledon Championships back to back. After winning the clay-court Major for the first time and successfully defending the title on the grass in London, Carlitos had his sights firmly set on the Paris Olympics. He had arrived at the clay-court event as the big favorite for the gold medal, but Novak Djokovic defeated him in two tie-breaks in a very close final, winning the much-coveted Olympic gold medal and completing the Career Golden Slam.
We recall Alcaraz won a total of 4 titles in 2024: BNP Paribas Open of Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon Championships, China Open. He also won 3 matches on 3 challenges played against the ATP No.1 Jannik Sinner. He also played – as I said above – the final of the Paris Olympics, and finale of the Six Kings Slam exhibition, losing in that case against Sinner (in what was an exhibition, and not an official match).