Carlos Alcaraz admits he “still gets nervous” on Centre Court as he gets past Mark Lajal in straight sets at Wimbledon

Alcaraz will take on Aleksandar Vukic in the second round match next.

Carlos Alcaraz admits he “still gets nervous” on Centre Court as he gets past Mark Lajal in straight sets at Wimbledon

Carlos Alcaraz (Image via Imago)

Carlos Alcaraz is no stranger to playing on center courts at Grand Slam events, having won three big titles in the last two years. Despite this, he admits to feeling nervous every time he steps onto the lush greens of the show court at the All England Club. 

After securing a tricky win against Mark Lajal on Monday, he was asked about his emotions about what he has achieved so far in his career and Wimbledon in particular. The Spaniard, who secured the biggest win of his career at the Championships last year against Novak Djokovic in the final, said he is privileged to have gotten the opportunity to even practice on the prestigious court. He was asked in the press conference if he still felt nervous during these big matches.

A lot… stepping on this Centre Court at Wimbledon… it is the most beautiful court I’ve played on. I still get nerves when I play here. I practiced 45 minutes on Thursday. It’s the first time I was nervous on a practice… just because I’m playing here. I’m glad and I’m a privileged guy to play on this court.
Carlos Alcaraz said

Alcaraz‘s nerves were noticeable as he had a shaky start to the tournament, scraping through 7-6(3) 7-5 6-2 against an opponent ranked over 260 spots below him. 

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Lajal, a qualifier, needs to be credited for pushing the World No.3 as much as he did, given it was his first-ever time on the center court at a Slam. Before this match, he had never qualified for the main draw of any event of this caliber.

Carlos Alcaraz expresses what it’s like to enter Wimbledon as the defending champion

Last year, after a sensational final against Novak Djokovic, Alcaraz fulfilled his childhood dream of lifting the Wimbledon trophy. Twelve months later, he is now playing as the defending champion in just his fourth appearance at the tournament.

Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon
Carlos Alcaraz with the 2023 Wimbledon winner’s trophy (Via Imago)

The 21-year-old walked onto the center court for his first-round match yesterday as one of the favorites and expressed what it was like in the press conference that followed. He was asked if it brought back good memories from last year.

A little bit. But I try not to think about it. It’s a new year. Totally different tournament. I have to be focused on my game just to play at the same level as last year if I want to repeat what I did last year. Obviously when I’m practicing and walking around, when I walk on court, I got goosebumps. I remember last year. It was a great feeling.
Carlos Alcaraz said

He is set to play the second round on Wednesday. Aleksandar Vukic of Australia will be his opponent.

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