WTA legend Justine Henin has told Carlos Alcaraz that he still needs to do a lot of learning as she assessed that the Spaniard lacked “stability and precision” in his loss against Alexander Zverev in the final eight clash of Australian Open.
Former Belgian tennis star thinks the 20-year-old has got into the “same trap” he was trapped in during the latter half of 2023 season. Alcaraz lost to Zverev in the four sets in the quarters of Australian Open final on Wednesday as she looked erratic and tactically lost throughout the match.
The 2-time Grand Slam champion tried to turn the tried after he was 2-5 in the third set and seemingly out of the count but fought back to take the set and avoid a straight set loss and forced Zverev to play one more set of tennis to claim the victory.
Alcaraz has not bagged a title since stunning Novak Djokovic in five sets in an enthralling Wimbledon classic last year to seal his second Grand Slam of the career.
Talking to Eurosport, 7-time Grand Slam champion, Henin lauded the performance of World No. 6 Zverev, while highlighting Alcaraz’s tactical troubles.
“The level Zverev has reached is crazy. He completely dominated Carlos Alcaraz and came onto the court so aggressively. He smothered Alcaraz, and the Spaniard looked like he was in trouble,” the Belgian assessed.
“He was hoping for more after a complicated end to last season and a difficult defeat at the US Open. Today, he’s fallen into the same trap. When he can’t develop his creativity, when things don’t go his way, he loses himself tactically.
“Carlos Alcaraz still has a lot of learning to do. He won this third set thanks to a minor miracle, as Zverev tightened up a little. At that point, you wondered whether he was going to find the right structure to turn things around for him. That’s what he’s been lacking: stability and precision.
“Despite all his qualities, I think that’s what he needs to learn. Today, he was unable to react for almost three sets. There was a customer in front of him, but Alcaraz lost his way by trying to rush things, by playing too fast.”
Zverev will battle Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals of the Australian Open on Friday, while Novak Djokovic is set to face Jannik Sinner in what will be their rematch of the Davis Cup semifinal clash.