Carlos Alcaraz has yet to win the indoor hard court event but he made a solid start to his campaign by defeating Nicolas Jarry 7-5, 6-1 in the opening round.

The Paris Masters fans in attendance roared with delight after the Spaniard’s win as his quest for a fifth title of the season continues.

What is Carlos Alcaraz’s opinion on playing in French crowds?

Though he is still in the early stages of his career, Alcaraz already has plenty of experience competing in France. He has made several appearances at the French Open and is currently competing at the Paris Masters in Bercy.

The French crowds are known for being arguably the most raucous and passionate in tennis, and they are never afraid to let the players know if they are for or against them.

For example, the French crowd booed Lorenzo Musetti when he walked on court to face home favourite Gael Monfils in the opening round of the Paris Olympics.

Chair umpires even find it difficult to control the French crowd at times, and this sometimes gets under the skin of some players.

As a result, French tennis fans have at times been criticised, but Alcaraz thoroughly enjoys visiting France and playing in front of their fans.

“For me the first thing is that Paris is a beautiful city, a very, very beautiful city, here they have the best tournaments in the world, which I love to play here,” he told French media outlet C à vous.

“The public is always very affectionate, when I don’t play against French obviously, they love their players very much, they love their people very much, which I admire very much as a country and the truth is that for me Paris will always have a place in my heart.”

How many times has Carlos Alcaraz played in France in 2024?

Alcaraz played three tournaments in France in 2024, each of which were played in the capital of Paris.

The first was the French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year, and he entered the event with concerns around an injured arm.

Wearing a protective sleeve, Alcaraz went on to claim the Roland Garros title for the first time and two months later, he was back at the same venue representing Spain in the Olympic Games.

Alcaraz made it to the gold medal match, where he was outlasted by Novak Djokovic who finally achieved his dream of becoming Olympic champion.

Now the World number two is back in Paris and is aiming to win his second Masters 1000 title of the season.

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