Alcaraz: How Neymar, Butler helped me raise my level

Peter Staples/ATP Tour

There was plenty of star power on Stadium Court at the Miami Open presented by Itau Monday when Carlos Alcaraz faced Gael Monfils. But there was major star power in the stands, too.

Football icon Neymar and basketball great Jimmy Butler watched the action and caught up with Alcaraz and Monfils after the match. Alcaraz, who won the match 6-2, 6-4, took notice of the celebrities in the crowd.

“Seeing them watching my game, obviously it's, let's say, some motivation for me just to raise the level, try to make them enjoy watching my game,” Alcaraz said. “That's all I was thinking about, but I obviously had to be focused on the match. I had to bring my own tennis to the match, and I think I did it pretty well. Hopefully they enjoyed.”

Football royalty 🔟👑

🇧🇷 @neymarjr is in the house! 👋@MiamiOpen | #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/iyid2VCrjq

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Clips of the trio chatting quickly spread on social media. Many fans would have loved to have been a fly on the wall for their conversation. Alcaraz provided some insight.

“[We spoke about] a little bit, well, everything. We were talking about Neymar a little bit, how he's going with the knee, recovering, step by step. He's here a couple of days, enjoying Miami a little bit,” Alcaraz said. “Then with Jimmy, as well, he has a really important game tomorrow. I wish him good luck.”

Butler has watched Alcaraz on several occasions. Last year after a match in Miami, the Miami Heat star explained what impressed him the most about the Spaniard.

“He’s always poised. He’s never rattled and more than anything, it looks like he’s having so much fun out there,” Butler told ATPTour.com. “I think whenever you have fun and you have that mentality that you know you’re the best, you go out there and you play as though you’re the best, results happen.”