Carlos Alcaraz has declared that the past two weeks have been his best tennis since returning from a wrist injury, sending a warning to his rivals as he prepares for the ATP Finals in Turin. The world No. 3 arrives on a nine-match winning streak after lifting back-to-back titles at the Vienna Open and the Paris Masters.
Alcaraz wins first Paris Masters title
The Spaniard claimed his first Paris Masters title on Sunday, beating Ben Shelton 7-6(5) 7-5 at the La Defense Arena. It was a notable achievement given his previous struggles at the event, where his best run was a quarter-final appearance in 2022, followed by several disappointing early exits.
This year, Alcaraz arrived in Paris late after his victory in Vienna and had just one practice session before his opening match on the fast new courts. Despite that, he adapted quickly, saving match points against Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals before defeating Shelton in the final.
Best tennis since comeback
After winning back-to-back indoor titles, Alcaraz said: "Probably these two last weeks has been the best that I ever played since my comeback." He added: "Probably my best week. Yeah, in terms of tennis, you know, I can match it with Vienna that I feel really comfortable in terms of tennis. But I would say this one, this week, I make one step forward mentally."
Alcaraz was sidelined from mid-April until late August with a wrist injury, missing the French Open and Wimbledon, plus four Masters 1000 events. He returned at the US Open, where he lost a late-night five-setter to Shelton in the quarter-finals, before gaining revenge in Paris.
ATP Finals ambitions
Alcaraz is now the clear favourite to win the season-ending championships for the first time, which would cap an injury-affected 2026 season with three straight titles. He finished runner-up to Jannik Sinner at the ATP Finals a year ago.
Asked whether he felt like the favourite in Turin, Alcaraz replied: "I mean, let's see. The matches were real close for me in this tournament. All I can say is I'm feeling really comfortable. I'm improving, you know, on this surface and in the courts. So let's see. I'm going to go to Turin, going to try to do the same things that I have been doing, always going forward, trying to still improving, to still evolving my game."
He added: "Obviously the ATP Finals is, you know, the best eight players in the world. It is a really important tournament for everybody. That's what we are working for and making a really good position to start the year the best that we can, and playing during the whole year the best that we can to qualify to that tournament. So that means, you know, we just put extra motivation, extra energy to come into that tournament."
Alcaraz, a seven-time Grand Slam champion, began 2026 by winning the Australian Open for the first time, completing the career Grand Slam. He also revealed that the Paris Masters was a title he had long been chasing, saying: "It's something I've been chasing for a long time, to be honest." He now hopes to add the ATP Finals to his collection, stating: "I'm going to go this year with a lot of confidence, with a lot of information in my bag on the things that I really wanted to improve and be better on that tournament, and I'm going to go for it, for sure."
