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Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz smiles as he plays Chile’s Nicolas Jarry in a men’s singles match on day six of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Saturday, July 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Let other players downplay their championship chances at Wimbledon. Let other players profess — feign? — humility. Let other players express caution in Week 1 that it’s still way too early to be talking about the possibility of reaching the final at the end of the fortnight.
Carlos Alcaraz is not interested in any of that. He is No. 1 in the ATP rankings and No. 1 in the seedings at the All England Club and embraces that status. Every bit of it.
So on Saturday, after reaching the fourth round at the All England Club with a 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3, 7-5 victory over No. 25 Nicolas Jarry at Centre Court, when he was asked whether it comes as something of a shock to him to already be one of the faces of the Grand Slam tournament, and already one of its favorites, at the ripe old age of 20, Alcaraz shrugged.
“Well, I’m not surprised, honestly, ’cause I know my skills. I know what I’m capable of,” Alcaraz said, wearing the white bucket hat that’s become his signature news conference accessory. ”(It’s) something that I work really hard (for): to be in that position, to be what I am right now.”
And when he was asked how difficult it is to avoid thinking about a potential matchup against Novak Djokovic — owner of four consecutive trophies, and seven overall, at Wimbledon; owner of a men’s-record 23 major championships in total — Alcaraz again dismissed the premise.
“Well, not only tennis fans, sports fans, want (that) final,” Alcaraz said, his ever-present smile melting into a chuckle. “Myself, as well, honestly.”
He then briefly, but ever so briefly, trotted out the types of things…
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