First spectator and first victim, Monday in the first round of Wimbledon, Jan-Lennard Struff (155th in the world) is admiring.

"We didn't know what to expect from him on grass because he had only played Wimbledon once (invited last year, he was eliminated in the second round, editor's note) and he didn't didn't play a preparatory tournament... Well, he played well", commented the German, beaten after a fight of more than four hours (4-6, 7-5, 4- 6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-4).

The young Spaniard went in a few triumphant months on hard courts and then on clay, from the status of a great hope at 18, to a phenomenon at 19.

To date, however, there may still be a small hole in his racquet that he intends to fill: the game on grass.

"I like to play on grass, but I would say that my level on this surface still needs to improve," said Alcaraz after beating Struff.

"I will improve myself"

"I'm clearly not an experienced player on grass, but I will improve. At the moment my level is OK," he added.

Rafael Nadal, the king of clay with his 14 titles at Roland-Garros but who also won Wimbledon twice (2008 and 2010) to reach his record of 22 Grand Slam titles, assures that Alcaraz is capable of "climbing very often at the net" and that he "moves very well".

But for the moment, the game of service and volley long essential on the English grass, is not his cup of tea.

"I tried it twice... and I lost the point both times. So I stopped doing it. I'm not fast enough in my climb to the net," he said. underlined after his victory in the first round.

Carlos Alcaraz against the German Jan-Lennard Struff for his entry into the running at Wimbledon, June 27, 2022 SEBASTIEN BOZON AFP

He has already learned a valuable lesson from his duel with Struff: "it is very important to be the first to attack".

The transition from clay to grass is reputed to be the most difficult as the way of moving changes from one surface to another.

And precisely, Alcaraz believes that it is on the side of travel that he must progress the most to reach the highest level on the green carpets.

"No pressure"

"Playing four hours on grass is more difficult for me than on other surfaces. A long rally here is like three or four on other surfaces," he explained.

Despite these "difficulties", it only took "Carlito" one match to make an impression at Wimbledon this year, as recounted by Struff, who experienced the moment from the inside and who evokes in particular a passing shot of the Spaniard in the tie-break in the 4th set, which probably tipped the match.

"I don't know how he did it... It was just incredible. I did everything well on that point, I put pressure on him, I got to the net, I covered the long passing from line, the passing pass … but not the angle he found”, described the German.

Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon, June 27, 2022 SEBASTIEN BOZON AFP

"He had passed a long line passing in the second round against Albert Ramos at Roland-Garros on a break point in the 5th set which made me jump from my couch. Today he made me feel a bit same thing, but crossed. It was really too strong", he added.

Another element still plays in favor of Alcaraz: the absence of "pressure" insofar as he does not "consider himself one of the favorites".

"If I play well, I have the level to win. But there are a lot of players more experienced and better than me on grass," he said.

How much longer will he play with such light spirit?

© 2022 AFP