Carlos Alcaraz has high praise for Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard following Frenchman's Basel title triumph

Reigning Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz had nothing but compliments for Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, as the rising star claimed his maiden ATP 500 title on Sunday at the 2024 Swiss Indoors Basel tournament.

Mpetshi Perricard looked impressive during the tournament, scoring upset wins over eighth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and fourth seed Holger Rune. The World No.31 went on to defeat sixth seed Ben Shelton in the final, winning the second career title of his young career.

Behind a booming serve and powerful forehand, Mpetshi Perricard dominated his opposition en route to the title. The 21-year old hit one of his fastest serves during the final, as it clocked in at 149.8mph.

After putting the tennis world on notice, Alcaraz was quick to acknowledge the Lyon native's potential. The World No.2 lauded Mpetshi Perricard's improved gameplay, and admitted the Frenchman could pose a threat to the rest of the tour.

“Without [a] doubt. Yeah, I mean, the way he serves is unbelievable,” said Alcaraz when asked if Mpetshi Perricard had the best serve on tour. I saw the stats in the final. The average of the first serve, it was 235 [km/h], and the second serve it was 215. So that's the average.
“That's crazy. Yeah, I played against him recently, was totally different conditions. Obviously the court was slower, so I could return his serves few times, you know, in the games that I broke his serve.
“So it was difficult, because, you know, from the baseline he has big shots, as well. Really good forehand, good volleys. You know, he can be solid from the baseline. So I think he just have to win in Basel and probably is a player who is going to be there for a long time.”