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Alcaraz targets overall improvement after being stunned by Tommy Paul in Toronto

It was the second successive year that the world No 1 came unstuck against the American as second seed Daniil Medvedev fell to Australia's Alex de Minaur

Published: Sat 12 Aug 2023, 1:16 PM

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American Tommy Paul dominated the net against Carlos Alcaraz during the quarter finals of the Canadian Open. - USA TODAY

American Tommy Paul dominated the net against Carlos Alcaraz during the quarter finals of the Canadian Open. - USA TODAY

Carlos Alcaraz said he needs to have more confidence in his game following Friday's surprise defeat by American Tommy Paul in the quarter-finals of the Canadian Open, and the world number one is hoping to iron out any issues in Cincinnati next week.

Wimbledon champion Alcaraz made a slow start for the third straight match in Toronto and fell to a 6-3 4-6 6-3 defeat - his first since the French Open semi-finals in June - with the loss a blow to his preparations ahead of the U.S. Open.


In another upset, Alex De Minaur beat world number three Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.

A tough contest saw the Australian emerge victorious after two hours and two minutes with a 7-6 (7) 7-5 win.

Australia's Alex De Minaur said he had to play his best tennis to beat world No 3 Daniil Medvedev - USA TODAY

Australia's Alex De Minaur said he had to play his best tennis to beat world No 3 Daniil Medvedev - USA TODAY

"I realise that I didn't play well, these matches," Alcaraz told reporters after losing to Paul for a second straight year in Canada. "All I can do now is practice to be better. I have some weeks before the U.S. Open.

"But now I have to be focussed on Cincinnati. It's a Masters 1000. It's a big tournament as well. Obviously, I take a lot of lessons from this tournament.

"I think I did well some things, but probably everything can be better. I always say you can be better in everything even if you've played your best matches in your career," he added.

"But right now, I have to improve a lot of things, getting more confidence in my game."

Alcaraz could meet Paul again in the Cincinnati third round after slipping to 1-2 in their head-to-head-meetings and the 20-year-old is aware of the threat the American poses in the last warm-up tournament before the U.S. Open from Aug. 28 to Sept. 10.

Paul, who improved to 2-1 lifetime against the 20-year-old Spaniard, is not sure if he has the recipe for winning against Alcaraz

“I don’t know if I figured out the recipe but I played a really good match today – I really went after my shots,” he said.

However, Paul won 52 percent of second-serve return points and earned ten break points, converting ten.

“You can’t start any point on your heels against him, he’ll take advantage of it” he said of Alcardaz. “You really have to go after your shots early in the rally and luckly I was feeling really good on the first strike tennis – that was the difference today, I think.”

Meanwhile, Alcaraz showed respect for his opponent whose idol is Andy Roccick.

"He's certainly a complete player. The matches that we've played have been really tough ones - last year in Miami and this one," reigning Flushing Meadows champion Alcaraz said.

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"He's a really solid player. Has great talent, great shots. He's really fast as well.

"So he's one of the best players in the world right now. There's no doubt about it. He's really tough on every surface. He's a mix of everything. It makes him really tough."



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