It has been quite an eventful year for Carlos Alcaraz. On one hand, he won a couple of major titles this season but on the other, he is struggling with poor health lately. The Spaniard is having breathing difficulties which jeopardized his participation at the ATP Finals. Nonetheless, he has kept going while wearing a nasal strip to improve his breathing condition. Despite Alcaraz giving his all at the year-ending championships, Andy Roddick highlighted a potential area of concern for the Spaniard.

Alcaraz has had a hectic year, playing tournaments week after week. Thus, he has got very little time to rest and the effects of it have been seen recently. Moreover, he still has a tournament to play after the ATP Finals, the Davis Cup Finals in which Rafael Nadal will be playing for one last time. As a result, Roddick feels that Alcaraz is getting stretched and the effects of it are seen on his health.

During the Tennis Channel Live show, Roddick mentioned, “Mentally, I felt he was there a little bit more. The breath white strip that he’s wearing, sounds like someone who is sick. But props to him, he has two Slams this year, he has Davis Cup which is Rafa’s farewell coming up. So it would be very easy for him to take a pass this event, especially after losing the first match. So props to him for staying there, he’s not 100% and missing more than he usually does.”

Roddick has been very impressed with Alcaraz’s performances this year. After the Spaniard helped his team win the Laver Cup, Roddick said, “It was kind of like, you know, it’s the thing that we saw with the big three and now they’re discussing Carlos in that, that same light and he kind of proved them right. And was like, hey, there’s a little speed bump at the US Open but, you know.” 

Meanwhile, Alcaraz wants to continue playing despite his health taking a hit. After his match against Andrey Rublev, he made a heartening revelation about his performance.

Carlos Alcaraz ‘surprised’ with his win over Andrey Rublev

Yesterday, the Spaniard bounced back at the ATP Finals by defeating Andrey Rublev in straight sets. It was a crucial victory for Alcaraz after losing his opening encounter against Casper Ruud. With this, he also kept his semifinal hopes alive. Despite overcoming his health issues and posting a win, Alcaraz was surprised with how he performed.

After defeating Rublev, he said, “I surprised myself a lot, the way I played today from the baseline, with my serve. I was really calm. I just tried to be focused on my game and what I had to do and forget that I’m not feeling well, that I’m sick, and other stuff. Once you step on the court you have to forget everything you’re struggling with outside the court and try to put your focus on hitting a good forehand or a good backhand. Obviously, you have to make a good tactic against the opponent, and I think I did that pretty well, so I did surprise myself!”

Up next, Alcaraz will face Alexander Zverev in a do-or-die encounter. Can he overcome his breathing problems and defeat Zverev? Let us know your views in the comments below.