Carlos Alcarazworld number 4, wasted a match ball only to end up falling through 6-7(4), 7-6(7) and 6-3 before the american tommy paul (number 34) in its debut in the Montreal 1000 Tennis Masters.

The Murcian, second seed of the Canadian tournament, surrendered to Paul after being in front 4-1 in the second set and after forgiving a match point with 7-6 in the tiebreaker, which was their third loss in fifteen games played this year on fast surfaces.

“Being the number 2 seed in the draw and number 4 in the world…it was the first time I felt that pressure and I couldn’t control it”

The Murcian thus concedes a knockout at the first change almost four months later and goes on two defeats in a row, something that had not happened since October 2021.

Then it was he himself who confessed what had happened to him: he couldn’t bear the pressure of being the favourite. With this tweet, he justified the defeat: “It was the first time that I couldn’t handle the pressure… I have to be ready to have this pressure, to have these kind of moments and learn to handle it!”

During the press conference, he also admitted that being so high could have affected him: “Being the number 2 seed in the draw and number 4 in the world… it was the first time that I felt this pressure and I couldn’t control it.”

Next stop: Cincinnati

The Masters 1000 champion in Miami and also in Madrid says goodbye to the Canadian tournament, in which he made his debut this year, after losing a battle of three hours and 19 minutes.

The Murcian will reappear next week in Cincinnatithe last 1,000 tournament before it begins, September 29, the U.S. Open.

Alcaraz failed to shake off the thorn of two recently lost finals in a row, in Hamburg and Umag, against Italians Lorenzo Musetti and Jannik Sinner, respectively.