Carlos Alcaraz said players “don’t feel so good” in half of the tennis season as Espanyol scored his 50th Tour lead at the Cincinnati Open.
The 22-year-old drove by Serbian Hamad Medjedovic in the third round, 6-4, and won his 13th consecutive Masters 1,000 wins.
Alcaraz is the first player to win 50 consecutive victories in four consecutive seasons since 2013-2016, 24-time main champion Novak Djokovic.
The world’s second-place finish will face Italy’s Luca Nardi in the fourth round on Wednesday.
The five-time Grand Slam champion said: “You have to think about a positive attitude and you can play the best tennis that day.”
“I’m really happy that I was able to play the best tennis ball in a very difficult game, even if I felt it wasn’t right.
“I’m happy and proud of it because it’s something I’m working on.”
Lucky loser Loser Nardi, 22, led the 16th seed Jakub Mensik 6-2 2-1 when the Czech team retired from the third round.
