Carlos Alcaraz wasn't happy with chair umpire Raluca Alexandra Andrei during his opening match in Beijing and he made sure to let the Romanian hear about it.
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During the first set of his match against rising French star Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, the No. 2 seed was hit with two time violations. The second one didn't come at a favorable moment at all as the Spanish tennis star just saved three consecutive break points and had a set point when the umpire felt he was slow with his serve.
As a result, Alcaraz lost his first serve. However, he was able to stay composed and close out the opener. But when he came to his chair, he had something to say.
This is not tennis. Im always very quick, I never get warnings. You gave me two in one set. Its impossible to play tennis like this;" the four-time Grand Slam champion was heard telling umpire Andrei.
Alcaraz moved past the incident
In the first game that was played after the Spaniard voiced his frustration, he broke Mpetshi Perricard at the start of the second set. Then, the world No. 3 just routinely held on to his serve for the rest of the match to complete a two-set win.
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At 6ft 8in or 203cm, the 21-year-old Frenchman is quickly establishing himself as one of the best servers in the game. But still, this year's French Open and Wimbledon champion managed to create a break point in each set and realize it.
The plan was just to put as many returns in as I can. Honestly it wasnt easy. He was serving 230 or 240 almost every serve. Second set, 210 or 215. So, it wasnt easy to play against him. Hes a really powerful player. Big serve, big shots from the baseline. So I had to be really focused. That was the plan. Try to not make too many mistakes and play aggressive from the baseline," the Spaniard reflected.
In his next match, Alcaraz plays against Tallon Griekspoor, the same player who stunned him in the US Open second round.
