Carlos Alcaraz Shares How He Spent His Time Before Starting Campaign on North American Hard-court Swing

World No.2 Carlos Alcaraz is bidding to win his sixth title of the season at the Cincinnati Masters.

Carlos Alcaraz Shares How He Spent His Time Before Starting Campaign on North American Hard-court Swing

Carlos Alcaraz (Image via ATP/X)

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Carlos Alcaraz returned to action after almost a month. He is in Cincinnati to chase his eighth Masters 1000 of his career.

The five-time Grand Slam champion survived a scare in his opening round match against Damir Dzumhur. After improving his head-to-head lead over Dzumhur to 2-0, Alcaraz has set up his career’s first encounter with Hamad Medjedovic. Following his opening-round win, the Spaniard sat for an interview with Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj and was asked how he spent his time after Wimbledon, and explained the importance of having time for himself after continuously playing matches.

I love having time for me (laughs). If I have to be honest, I always say that you…that’s what you are working for as well, you know. I love playing tennis. I love when I step on the court, but sometimes, it is too many days in a row, too many weeks in a row. So, I just love to take my time off just with my family, with my friends, just at home doing nothing at all.

In the Wimbledon final, Jannik Sinner came from a set down to beat Alcaraz and lift the second title of the season. It was their third meeting this season after the Italian Open and the French Open finals, where Alcaraz emerged victorious both times.

They can once again schedule a clash, but for that to happen, both of them have to advance to the final in Cincinnati. Sinner beat Daniel Elahi Galan in the second round and will face Gabriel Diallo next. The four-time Grand Slam champion is aiming to defend his title.

Carlos Alcaraz aims for improvement in the Cincinnati Masters

Carlos Alcaraz‘s concentration wavered a bit during his opening-round match at the Cincinnati Masters. During that interview with Tennis Channel, Alcaraz explained why it is important to maintain the concentration level throughout the tournament.

Carlos Alcaraz Monte Carlo Masters 2025
Carlos Alcaraz (Image via Instagram/Carlos Alcaraz)

I would say that I have to be better for sure. I just started the match really well, feeling the ball pretty good, to be honest. I mean, I feel like if you just switch off your mind for just one, two, or three points, everything becomes even tougher to come back. So I had to come back in the third set, but in general, I just wanted to feel much better.

Alcaraz is chasing his first Masters 1000 of his career in the tournaments of the North American hard-court swing before the US Open. At the Canadian Open (which he skipped this season), Alcaraz has never advanced beyond the quarterfinals. In Cincinnati, he was the finalist in 2023, losing that match to Novak Djokovic in three sets. Last year, however, Gael Monfils ended his run in the opening round.

Carlos Alcaraz has a chance to reclaim his No.1 ranking

In an interview, Alcaraz has made it clear that one of his goals for the rest of the season is to reach the top of the rankings table. Alcaraz doesn’t have many points to defend on the North American hard-court swing.

Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner
Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner (Image via X/The Sinner Times)

But Sinner does; given that last year, he won the Cincinnati Masters as well as the US Open (by beating Taylor Fritz). Sinner also captured the Shanghai Masters as well as the ATP Finals. At present, the 23-year-old has 10,880 points on the live rankings. If Alcaraz wins the Cincinnati Masters, he will inch closer to reclaiming the No.1 spot from Sinner.

Alcaraz has 8,630 points on the live rankings and will have 9,580 if he takes home the title. At the US Open, Alcaraz suffered a second-round exit, while in Shanghai, he lost in the quarterfinals. In the year-end championships, the 22-year-old failed to progress to the semifinals.

Also read: Daniil Medvedev Trying to Look up to Iga Swiatek Amid Title Drought: “Playing Much Better Than Me”