Carlos Alcaraz is already more complete than Sampras and Becker, says John McEnroe

ROLAND GARROS — Carlos Alcaraz is starting to look invincible. Even the weather gods, try as they might, can’t seem to stop him.

His second-round opponent Taro Daniel earned parity on the scoreboard with just an hour gone, and perhaps thought he was in with a chance of an almighty upset.

In fact, the loss of a set seemed to draw a step-up in level from Alcaraz. He hit 26 winners over the next 71 minutes and lost just three more games. The four-set match lasted less than two-and-a-half hours and the Spaniard won 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.

The top seed was troubled less by his opponent than he was by the wind, at times gusting and whipping up the clay on court, creating swirls of red dust.

“It is tough, you know, but I could say that I’m a player who plays really well with the wind,” Alcaraz said.

“I practise in Villena [where his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero’s academy is based] that has a lot of windy days, and I’m used to playing with wind.

“It’s tough, because you play two games with wind, and [after the end change] two games against wind, and it’s really tough to adapt your game.”

It was in the midst of one such breezy period that Daniel landed his first proper blow on Alcaraz, breaking his serve in the second game of the second set and urging the crowd to get behind him.

They begrudgingly obliged – a game performance from the Japanese player could extend the Alcaraz show, after all – but they had not watched the French No 1 Caroline Garcia beaten earlier to then watch the new hero of tennis go out as well.

While Daniel was in the ascendancy, there was a lull in the crowd, like an audience during an intermission. He even had the temerity to win a set, which appeared to be the worst thing he could do, judging by the reaction from Alcaraz, who even impressed himself. “It has been a really complete match from my side, and I’m really happy with that,” Alcaraz added.

And Alcaraz was not the only one who thought so.

“Truthfully, I think he is a complete player,” Eurosport expert John McEnroe said.

“His backhand could be better, and I’m trying to think what else. I’d give [all his attributes] an A or an A+. Maybe his backhand would be a B+. That’s not to say it’s bad.

“I’m not kidding, this is the best I’ve ever seen a 20-year-old, as complete a player. [Pete] Sampras had the biggest serve I ever saw in my life. How could someone that age serve that big? [Boris] Becker was another. [But] Pete’s backhand [was weaker], and Boris maybe didn’t move as well as some of the other guys.”

He added: “The sky seems to be the limit at this point. Expectations are so high… but he seems to handle it unbelievably well. At some point, it’s going to hit him, and we just hope he will be ready for it then.”

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