Corentin Moutet had an unusual response to Carlos Alcaraz’s outburst at the Cincinnati Open.
The usually-smiley world No. 3 destroyed his racket during a rare meltdown in his opening-round defeat to Gael Monfils earlier this week.
And Moutet, who is known for his on-court antics, claimed that it would be seen as a “mental issue” if he was the one smashing rackets.
Alcaraz was in all sorts of trouble when he resumed his match against Monfils on Friday. The four-time Grand Slam champion took the first set when play started on Thursday night but the Frenchman led by a mini-break in the tiebreak when they were rained off for the night.
The 20-year-old looked lost when play resumed. After being taken into a decider, Alcaraz went an early break down and blew a point to get back on serve. For the first time in his professional career, he smashed his racket into the ground several times and was slapped with a code violation.
His actions were so out-of-character they left commentators shocked as one remarked: “He desperately wants to win this match.” And Moutet was quick to notice how different the reaction was when it was Alcaraz letting his tempers flare.
The world No. 71 reposted a video of the meltdown and wrote: “When I do it I’ve got ‘mental issue’,” adding a laughing emoji. Moutet quickly clarified his comment, explaining that it wasn’t a dig at Alcaraz.
“I don’t judge Carlos here of course. He is a legend already and he behave amazing. I’m making fun of how the reaction of the commentator can be different on a same gesture,” he added.
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