"Not as easy as result seems" - Alcaraz on Umag opener

Carlos Alcaraz's title defence in Umage got off to a good start as he was able to beat Norbert Gombos in straight sets.

It was a solid start for Alcaraz who bounced back well after his disappointing finish in Hamburg. Alcaraz was very reflective ahead of Umag admitting that at times he didn't deal with the pressure well despite claiming he was unbothered by it. He continued the trend of honesty after this match saying it was much tougher than the result suggests:

“It was a really tough match. It wasn’t as easy as the result seems. Norbert played a really good game and the first round of every tournament is never easy, so I had to get used to the conditions. It was tough for me, but in the end, I found a way to play better and get the win.”

Up next is Facundo Bagnis who is playing really well lately. Speaking about that matchup, Alcaraz said:

“I played against him [Bagnis] in Challengers, I remember we played tough matches. I know him so well, and he’s a great player on clay, so it’s going to be a really tough match, but I’m going to try to show my best.”