No. 31 seed Carlos Alcaraz thinks he has earned the chance to be a seed at a Grand Slam. 18-year-old Alcaraz is a seeded player for the first time at a Grand Slam as he saw off Alejandro Tabilo 6-2 6-2 6-3 in his Australian Open first round clash.
“Being seeded is always good,” Alcaraz said, per the ATP website. “In the early rounds, you kind of avoid meeting the top players, that’s a small advantage that is always welcome. And I think I’ve earned the position”.
Last year, Alcaraz captured his maiden ATP title in Umag, won the Next Gen ATP Finals, as well as stunned world No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas at the US Open.
Being respected is important for Alcaraz
“I like being established on Tour, when players know you’re there and see you as a close rival,” Alcaraz admitted.
“Last year was a great year for me, when I consolidated myself as one of the best on Tour. I’m almost in the Top 30, and it’s very good when other players are getting to know you, and that they have a bit more respect for you”.
Also, Alcaraz admitted he is dreaming of making a deep run at Melbourne Park. “I like seeing the draw, I like dreaming, seeing who’s in the semi-finals. To me, that’s dreaming right now,” he added.
Alcaraz was glad with the way he performed in his Melbourne opener. ”I felt really good. I didn’t expect that this first match was going to be really good for me. I played a great level in the first match of the season.
Really good feelings… hope the next matches are going to be the same,” Alcaraz said after his first round win. ”I’m starting to get more comfortable on hard court than on clay courts. I think the most tournaments of the year are on hard court, so you have to be ready”.
