“If I have no expectation, I’m gonna win it” – Alcaraz entering Wimbledon with new-found grass-court prowess

The pre-Wimbledon landscape has shifted over the past week. Prior to Queen’s, few felt as though Carlos Alcaraz could lead much of a challenge for the Wimbledon title this year, given his inexperience on grass courts.

During his first round match against Arthur Rinderknech, it looked as though that was still very much the case as the young Spaniard struggled with his movement and footwork on an alien surface.

Alcaraz learns how to adjust to grass-court tennis

Just under one week and five matches later, Carlos Alcaraz has not only got to grip with the unique surface, he has managed to find a way to bring his devastating best to grass-court tennis.

“I mean, I see myself with a lot of weapons, you know, on grass. I try to hit big shots all the time, you know. I think I improve my serve really well. You know, with the forehand, you know, I try to dominate all the time,” Alcaraz said in his post-match press conference.

“But yeah, I consider myself, you know, a good player on grass with all the weapons that I have.”

In blustery conditions, against a highly adept grass-court player in Alex De Minaur, Alcaraz was given the perfect test of his own abilities on the grass.

As he usually does, Alcaraz passed the test with flying colours, leaving a sun-soaked West London crowd in rapturous disbelief at the level this young Spaniard was able to reach.

Wimbledon prospects now clear for Carlos Alcaraz

It is not only Alcaraz’s ability that is astonishing, but the manner in which he has so quickly learnt to adjust his game to a surface he has only played 11 matches on in his entire career.

The US Open champion is a precocious student of the game, and is learning at a very rapid pace.

Despite this only being a 500-level tournament, this may be one of the most significant titles in Carlito’s young career thus far. It shows not only that he can – and most probably will – win several Wimbledon titles, but also displays how quickly he is able to learn and develop his game.

Given the level he is already at, this is a truly sobering prospect for the rest of the tour. It also gives some indication as to how he will learn from his painful exit to Novak Djokovic at Roland-Garros, and how Alcaraz will implement these lessons the next time the two face each other at Grand Slam level.

On this evidence, it does not seem likely that Carlos Alcaraz will make the same mistake twice.

When asked what his expectations for Wimbledon were, given that he had no expectations coming into Queen’s, Alcaraz smiled, “No expectation. You know, if I have no expectation, I’m gonna win it.”

It was clearly a tongue-in-cheek response from an affable young man, but it revealed something insightful about the way he thinks, and about his ambitions at Wimbledon in just under one week’s time.

Confidence sky-high ahead of Wimbledon

“I have a lot of confidence right now coming into Wimbledon. I ended the week playing at the high level. So right now I feel one of the favourites, you know, to win Wimbledon.

“Of course, you know, preparing the Wimbledon as I did this week is so special for me, and I have a lot of confidence to make that dream possible this year.”

How Alcaraz would adjust to grass-court tennis was one of the biggest question marks ahead of this year’s Wimbledon, which is why most had Djokovic as the sole favourite to retain his title again this year.

But Carlos Alcaraz has answered that question, and answered it emphatically.

It may have huge implications for an utterly compelling inter-generational rivalry, as well as for how the Wimbledon Championships play out this year.

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