“I’m not going to lie, I prefer Musetti”: Alcaraz was honest about Djokovic’s withdrawal from the 2025 ATP Finals

After failing in the 2023 and 2024 premieres, the Spanish Carlos Alcaraz (2nd) was finally able to clench his fist in his first presentation in the ATP Finalsdefeating the Australian 7-6 (5) and 6-2 Alex de Minaur (7th) to climb to the top in the Jimmy Connors group and look forward to concluding the season as number 1 in the world ranking.

“Here I am fighting not only to lift the trophy, but also for first place in the world ranking. So I am very happy with the performance I had in this first game of the group stage. I have remained very focused on my goals against a player as dangerous as Alex isalways turns out to be a very complicated opponent,” said the young man from Murcia in a press conference, after taking a 5-0 lead against the tireless Oceanic team.

Subsequently, Juan Carlos Ferrero’s pupil referred to the surprising elimination in his debut at the Paris Masters 1000: “You always have to look for the positive things. We have talked about what happened in Paris, we have thought about it, but a bad game can always come. Obviously, when you have a match like this, it is normal that in the next tournament you may have a few small doubts, especially about how you are going to feel.”

“Here, however, I have felt very good on the track. I am aware that we are the eight best in the world, here you either play well or they eat you. That helps you stay focused all the time on every shot and every moment. Mentally I try to follow the objectives that we have set, I think it has been a very good first round,” said the owner of 24 titles at the highest level, eight during 2025, who is participating for the third time in the prestigious event.

On the other hand, the six-time Grand Slam champion confessed about the learning he acquired recently: “Little by little I have understood what I needed off the court to stay motivated and not lose that emotion. “The year is always super long, there are many games, many tournaments, so it is normal to arrive at the end of the season tired mentally and physically.”

“I think this year I had a lot more time between tournaments, more time at home, which was great for me to prepare better physically and be fresher mentally. This tournament is really important, it is a tournament where I want to do great, I want to win it one day“, continued the former leader of the organization, which needs just two more wins to displace the Italian Jannik Sinner (1st) from the top.

Finally, Alcaraz opened up about the absence of Serbian Novak Djokovic (5th), who gave his place to local Lorenzo Musetti (9th) after winning the ATP 250 in Athens: “I’m not going to lie, I prefer Lorenzo over Djokovic in the group. It is always difficult to face Novak here because of the experience he has and his level on these courts. I lost to him in the 2023 semi-finals, I think I played well and he killed me. “It is clear that if Musetti is in Turin it is because he deserves it.”

All the ATP Finals activity can be followed LIVE, and exclusively, on the AM850 and Disney+ Premium Plan screens.