Gael Monfils of France competes in a men's singles round of 32 match against Carlos Alcaraz of Spain at the Cincinnati Open in Cincinnati, Ohio, August 16, 2024. /CFP
Carlos Alcaraz repeatedly smashed his racket on the court in a rare show of frustration on Friday as the four-time Grand Slam winner fell to Gael Monfils 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 at the Cincinnati Open.
In a contest that was suspended by rain on Thursday night with the players in a second-set tiebreaker, the 37-year-old Monfils advanced by taking the last two sets from the second-seeded Alcaraz, who called the loss his "worst match."
"I felt like it was the worst match that I've ever played on my career," Alcaraz said. "I've been practicing really well. I was feeling great. But I couldn't play. I want to forget it and try to move on to New York (for the upcoming U.S. Open)."
Trailing 3-1 in the tiebreaker when the match was halted, Alcaraz was hoping for a reset when play resumed Friday. But the No. 3 player in the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Rankings wasn't able to control his emotions.
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain competes in a men's singles round of 32 match against Gael Monfils of France at the Cincinnati Open in Cincinnati, Ohio, August 16, 2024. /CFP
"It never happened before, because I could control those feelings," Alcaraz said. "Today I couldn't. I was feeling that I was not playing any kind of tennis. It was really frustrating for me. At some point, I didn't want to be on the court anymore."
Alcaraz was playing his first match since earning a silver medal at the Paris Summer Olympics after losing in the final to Novak Djokovic, who also beat him last year in the Cincinnati title match.
Monfils was back on the court on Friday afternoon against No. 15 seed Holger Rune in the round of 16, but the 37-year-old was denied by the Danish man 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.