Carlos Alcaraz ‘got what he deserved’ after being presented with awkward gift

Carlos Alcaraz received an unusual souvenir to mark his Monte-Carlo Masters victory.

Carlos Alcaraz received a replica trophy that he hand made ahead of the tournament (Image: Tennis TV)

Carlos Alcaraz was crowned the Monte-Carlo Masters champion on Sunday, coming from a set down to beat an ailing Lorenzo Musetti 3-6 6-1 6-0 in the final. Three years after making a losing debut in Monaco, the Spaniard turned things around to lift his sixth Masters 1000 title.

After picking up his latest piece of silverware, Alcaraz received another trophy during his post-match press conference – the pottery replica he created himself ahead of the tournament. The world No. 3 was challenged to create a clay version of the Monte-Carlo cup and failed miserably – but he joked that it was “what he deserved”.

Alcaraz was one of several players who tried their hand at pottery on the pre-tournament media day last weekend with expert Jacques Monneraud. Tasked to create a replica of the trophy, things didn’t go to plan for the 21-year-old.

While players like Grigor Dimitrov and Felix Auger-Aliassime created some impressive cups, Alcaraz’s fell apart and collapsed in on itself. “I wouldn’t complain [if I won this trophy]. I get what I deserve,” he laughed.

After being crowned the champion, Alcaraz was reunited with his duplicate trophy, being presented with the piece of pottery at the end of his winner’s press conference.

“This is the trophy that I made. What do you think guys? It’s the worst one,” he smiled, posing for a photo with his creation.

Carlos Alcaraz won his sixth Masters title in Monte-Carlo (Image: Getty)

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“I made it. I made it in the media day before the tournament began. Could have gone been better.”

Turning back to the official trophy, Alcaraz added: “I’m going to keep this one!”

While the four-time Grand Slam champion wasn’t happy with his pottery efforts, he was delighted with the determination he showed this week in Monaco.

Alcaraz had never won a match at the tournament before, losing on his debut in 2022. He missed the last two editions due to injury, and came to Monte-Carlo after suffering a disappointing opening-round exit in Miami.

The Spaniard had been struggling with external pressure, explaining that it was difficult to hear people suggesting he should win every tournament he played. But he brought a new mindset into the clay season, and it paid off.

“I always say that, you know, it’s, let’s say it’s freak talk. When you’re not winning or the people have really high expectations of you, you don’t win tournaments or matches, you know, they probably talk a lot, let’s say,” he said.

“So I just realised that I don’t have to think about all they talking about and just focus on myself.

“So I’m not gonna say I just proved them, that they’re wrong, but I just really happy to be able to refocus the important things and just be focused on myself and the part that I have to follow with my team, with my close people, and just playing for myself. So I’m just really happy that I was able to do it.”