Given Carlos Alcaraz is the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings and has just completed the Career Grand Slam with his Australian Open win, he could be forgiven for sitting back and admiring his work so far in 2026.
The Spaniard, of course, has other ideas. Alcaraz is infused with the relentless desire to improve that has always characterised the greatest players in tennis history, and that is what will be at the forefront of his mind next week when he returns to action as the top seed at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha.
“Obviously I can see myself that [I have had] a lot of success so far, winning the biggest tournaments in the world,” said Alcaraz on Sunday at his pre-tournament press conference in Qatar. “But I just see myself with weaknesses. A lot of players, I know that they're trying to catch me up in terms of they are studying my game, they study how I play, trying to beat me, trying to challenge me.
“I have to be ready for that, and I have to see where my level is, where my tennis is. I have to try to put myself in their minds and think what they could do when playing against me. So that's what I mean about saying I have to improve some things. Obviously, you cannot be lagging in the level, you just have to keep it going.”
One obvious example of the rivals Alcaraz was referring to is Jannik Sinner. The Italian lines up as the second seed in the Doha field, presenting the possibility of a 17th chapter of the pair’s electric Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry in the championship match. Yet the 22-year-old Alcaraz has no intention of getting ahead of himself as he looks to better the quarter-final run he forged on Doha debut a year ago.
“I know how difficult every match is. Every match is different, our play is totally different,” said the Spaniard, who takes on Top 30 star Arthur Rinderknech in his opener. “I think this draw is a really tough one for a 500 tournament. We can see the first matches how good matches that we have in the first round.
“So [I’m] just thinking about a match at a time, and let's see how far I can go. Obviously my mind is trying to go as far as I can. If it's possible to play a final, obviously that would be great, and that's what I'm looking for, so let's see. I'm not thinking about playing or just putting myself in the final too early. I want to think day by day.”
Alcaraz headed to Doha with a 7-0 record for the season, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, following his Melbourne title run. He first enjoyed a stopoff in Bahrain, where he visited his fellow Spanish sporting superstars Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz at F1 pre-season testing, but his focus has now fully shifted to trying to take his game to even greater heights in the Qatari capital.
“Coming here, these days, my team and I, just we set up some goals for this tournament,” revealed the 25-time tour-level champion. “We are not talking about results at all. It's just more about the process to be better, still in the process to grow up. There are some things that I really want to be better and [I want to] develop my game in a way that I really want to show up and to pull off here in this tournament.
“That would be a really successful week for me, besides results. I [want to] see myself that I'm just doing the right things on and off the court.”
© Copyright 1994 - 2026 ATP Tour, Inc. All Rights Reserved. No part of this site may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way or by any means (including photocopying, recording or storing it in any medium by electronic means), without the written permission of ATP Tour, Inc.. Terms & Conditions | Privacy | Community Social Media Policy | Modern Slavery Statement | Feedback | Cookies | Your Privacy Choices 
