Carlos Alcaraz expected to suffer huge ranking blow as he loses to Gael Monfils at Cincinnati Open

Carlos Alcaraz may lose his spot inside the top three and face Novak Djokovic or Jannik Sinner in the US Open semifinal as a result.

Carlos Alcaraz expected to suffer huge ranking blow as he loses to Gael Monfils at Cincinnati Open

Carlos Alcaraz and Gael Monfils (via NY Times)

Carlos Alcaraz came up short against Gael Monfils in the second round of Cincinnati in one of the most dramatic matches of his career. The young Spaniard seemed to have been pushed over the edge as he obliterated his racket after being unable to break the Frenchman back at 1-2 in the final set despite having multiple breakpoints.

His reaction went viral and the 21-year-old, who is known to be one of the most composed and mature players for his age, received immense backlash. The World No. 3 will have to endure more suffering as he failed to defend his points from his previous run to the final in Cincinnati. 

YouTube video

Ahead of the tournament, Carlos Alcaraz was expected to overtake Novak Djokovic to claim the second spot but his surprising loss to Monfils leaves him barely hanging on to his current rank.

FS Video

If Alexander Zverev clinches the title at the last US Masters 1000 event of the year, he will move up a spot to tumble Alcaraz. The reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion is now confirmed to be in the same half of the US Open draw as either Novak Djokovic or Jannik Sinner and will likely play one of them in the semifinal at the final Slam of the year.

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Mirra Andreeva and Iga Swiatek (via Imago)

Carlos Alcaraz apologizes for his behavior in an emotional post 

After being called out by thousands of people for breaking his first racket on tour on August 16th, Carlos Alcaraz fueled more criticism by saying he played the worst match of his career while not crediting his veteran opponent, Monfils. He cleared the air with an emotional post on his social media accounts with the following caption.

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz showed no mercy on his racket (via SkySports/X)
I want to apologise for my attitude yesterday, it was not good and that should not happen on court. I’m human, the nerves had accumulated and sometimes it’s very tough to control when there is that tension. I will work so that it doesn’t happen again. Now it’s time to think about NYC!
Carlos Alcaraz via Instagram

The young Spaniard has taken time to reflect on the situation and apologize to all his fans, expressing his regret for his actions. He will now be looking forward to getting back to form before the final Grand Slam of the year begins.

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