After the 2024 Australian Open, Carlos Alcaraz didn’t play any hard-court tournament before Indian Wells and preferred playing on the South American clay. But it seems like his focus is solely on improving his hard-court game this year. He is playing in Rotterdam as well as Doha in late February. Transitioning from hard to clay and back to hard can be quite tricky, so it looks like a wise decision made by him and his team.
Alcaraz will try to break new ground at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The Spaniard has won titles on clay, grass, and outdoor hard courts but has yet to lift the trophy on an indoor court. He has never even been to the final of an indoor tournament (excluding Next Gen Finals). He will look to change that in Rotterdam.
Alcaraz Aiming for Indoor Glory
Carlos Alcaraz has struggled to replicate his dominant performances in outdoor conditions when playing indoors. He has a 17-11 win-loss record (excluding Next Gen Finals and Laver Cup) on indoor hard courts, which is not up to his high standards. On the low-bouncing indoor courts, his topspin shots get less bite, and opponents can rush him. However, Rotterdam’s relatively slow indoor hard courts could suit his game better than faster surfaces.
Daniil Medvedev, Alex de Minaur, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Holger Rune, Arthur Fils, and Hubert Hurkacz are among the best players in the draw, and lots of unseeded players who can compete at the highest level indoors, like Sebastian Korda, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Alexander Bublik, Tallon Griekspoor, and Lorenzo Sonego. The draw is stacked, but Alcaraz is the top seed and should be delighted with the absence of Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev.
Alcaraz has been improving his indoor game, and if he’s in top form, he could take his first indoor title in Rotterdam.
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey – USA TODAY Sports
