Carlos Alcaraz made a worrying comment towards his coach during his shock defeat to Sebastian Korda at the Miami Open.
Korda, who is ranked at world number 36, secured a surprise 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 victory over Alcaraz in the round of 32 stage of the competition.
The American star broke Alcaraz's serve to go 5-3 up in the first set, before holding to take the lead over the world number one.
Alcaraz fought back from the brink in the second set and survived break points against Korda, but the American held on to win the third set and complete one of the biggest victories of his career.
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Remarkably, it is only the second time that Alcaraz has lost across 19 matches in 2026.
The 22-year-old, who is the reigning Australian Open, US Open and French Open champion, didn't appear entirely comfortable on the court in Miami.
According to Spanish tennis journalist Jose MorĆ³n, Alcaraz turned towards coach Samuel Lopez before the second set and spoke of his belief that he could not get back into the match.
"At most I can do a 6-3, 6-4 or 6-3, 7-5, something like that," he is said to have told Lopez. "I can't do any more, I can't do any more."
In response, his coach offered him encouragement to continue to push on in the match.
And that outcome may have been exactly what Alcaraz was hoping to achieve with his remarks, as he roared back in the second set to level proceedings - before ultimately going on to lose.
'It's a bit annoying'
He expanded on those conversations in his post-match interview, telling reporters: "I think I just played a good match. Some details, some moments, he just played well, I guess.
"There were a lot of 30-alls, 40-alls, advantages, that I just didn't make. But we have to see the other side of the night, and Seb played some really good points.
"Me and my team, we spoke a bit, what I did great and what I did good. What I will say is there were a couple of things in previous tournaments where I didn't feel comfortable, and I think in this tournament I've started to feel better and better.
"I always say that closing the match is really difficult. It's like everything comes to you and it's really difficult to deal with it. So I could feel the difference, and he just made three mistakes in a row [to win the second set] that he didn't make in the whole match. I just made the most of it."
"It's not really good, to be honest," he said, when asked about players seeming to raise their games when they face him. "It's a bit annoying. But you have to accept it. You have to keep going and try your best.
"Luckily, I have a lot of weapons, a lot of things that I can do on the court to make him uncomfortable. Today, to be honest, I couldn't find that way.
"Even though he was playing, I would say, above his normal level, I was there. A lot of 30-all, 40-all, break points. I didn't make it, but for the next matches I need to think they will play like that, and I need to take my chances."
Topics:Ā Carlos Alcaraz, Tennis
Ryan Smart