"He can win anywhere": Steve Johnson dismisses surface concerns for Carlos Alcaraz

Former American player Steve Johnson speculated on the reasons behind Carlos Alcaraz’s decision to change his schedule and travel to Rotterdam for the ABN AMRO Open. The Spaniard reached the Australian Open quarterfinals but fell to Novak Djokovic—surely a disappointment for Alcaraz, who was aiming for his fifth major title.

Alcaraz quickly traveled to the Netherlands to prepare for his first European tournament of the season, and it has paid off, as he is now through to the final—his first in an indoor hard-court event. He will face Alex de Minaur for the title.

Alcaraz’s shift to Rotterdam sparks debate

In the past two years, the Spaniard had opted for the Golden Swing in South America during February, competing in the Argentina Open and the Rio Open, both on clay courts. However, his 2024 experience was not ideal, as he lost in the Buenos Aires semifinals to Nicolás Jarry and later suffered an injury in the first round of Rio against local player Thiago Monteiro.

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This time, Alcaraz chose to travel to Europe for Rotterdam and then to Qatar for the Doha Open. Both tournaments serve as preparation for the Sunshine Double in March, where he will defend his Indian Wells title and his Miami Open semifinal points.

Alcaraz’s decision to change his schedule caught the attention of many, and Steve Johnson shared his thoughts on the world No. 3’s choice. The American believes that surface changes were not a factor in Alcaraz’s decision. “He doesn’t pick a tournament because he’s going to be better on one surface like most of us would. He can win any tournament, any surface, any country—you name it.”

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Johnson also suggested that last year’s injury in the Golden Swing could have influenced Alcaraz’s choice. “Maybe he has a little mental scar tissue. He did roll his ankle last year, so maybe that’s on his mind, and he doesn’t want to get hurt again,” he said. “That’d be a silly reason not to go, but for him, it just doesn’t matter.”

He also pointed out that Alcaraz’s decision was not made recently. “He picked his schedule a year ago when these tournaments negotiate appearance fees, so it’s not like he chose to go to Rotterdam six weeks ago when the deadline was up,” Johnson explained. “This was planned long before—he had already decided to do this swing instead of the Golden Swing in South America.”

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On the same Nothing Major podcast, Sam Querrey praised Alcaraz for keeping things simple. “He’s going to get a massive appearance fee wherever he plays, so he basically has the same decision as a guy ranked 70th in the world who isn’t getting an appearance fee—just go play wherever you want,” Querrey said.

“If you’re him, you’ve got Indian Wells and Miami coming up, so why not stay and play two massive hard-court tournaments that are closer to home?” he concluded.

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