By Richard Pagliaro | Monday, October 12, 2026
Photo credit: Simon Bruty/USTA
Explosiveness is a key weapon in Carlos Alcaraz’s all-court arsenal.
Today, Zizou Bergs blew up Alcaraz’s eight-match winning streak with a stunning 7-5, 7-6(4) upset of the seven-time Grand Slam champion in a Shanghai surprise.
Detonating much of his damage in quick-strike rallies, Bergs hit eight more winners (24 to 16) and out-aced Alcaraz nine becoming the fifth man to beat the former No. 1 this season.
The 39th-ranked Belgian is the lowest-ranked man to beat Alcaraz since 55th-ranked compatriot David Goffin upset the Spaniard at the 2025 Miami Open.
Reflecting on the defeat, Alcaraz said it was a match of extremes: He played “really bad”, while Bergs played “really good.”
“Well, today it wasn’t a good match for my side. I didn’t play good,” Alcaraz told the media in Shanghai. “I would say it was a really bad level for me, and it was a really good level from him.
“I would say, even like that, I think it was a close match. I would say, in few important moments I didn’t play my best. I could say there were a few moments that he was lucky as well, that’s what I think.
“You know, some returns, some shots he hit it with the frame, it went in, and he just went into the point again. He made the most of those moments because after that, I would say, lucky shot, he played a really good point. He played a really good level in some moments.”
Alcaraz also cited dramatically different conditions from his 6-3, 6-3 sweep of Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the first round. The Australian Open champion said the court played slower tonight than the faster conditions he experienced playing beneath the closed Shanghai roof in his opener.
“To be honest, I just felt the first round it was really, well, it was fast,” Alcaraz said. “Today I didn’t feel same way. So, it’s weird that in just in two days it can feel that I can feel the court, feel the conditions way different.
“Obviously the first round I played with the roof closed. Today I played outdoor. Yeah, I felt different. I felt the first round it was really quick. Today the ball was bigger and it was a little bit slower. I don’t know why. It’s something weird, and something that they have to look after.”
In some losses this season, Alcaraz hasn’t served with precision under pressure.
Today, Alcaraz never really adapted to Bergs’ sharp slice serve wide on the deuce side and conceded he wasn’t comfortable with his return position. Bergs won 50 percent of his second-serve points and faced only two break points. Bergs sometimes deployed the serve-and-volley, particularly on the deuce court, in an effort to exploit Alcaraz’s deeper return positioning. Bergs won 11 of 18 trips to net.
“To be honest, I didn’t play the way that I wanted to play, a lot of mistakes,” Alcaraz said. “I didn’t find a good position on the return. For example, I was returning pretty well. Today I didn’t find a good one.
“Obviously credit to him. I would say he serves really, really well.
“But, you know, when I got into the rhythm, when I got into the point, I made a lot of mistakes. I wasn’t feeling comfortable with the shots. So, I’m really disappointed from today’s match, because I didn’t find the solution. I would say I just made a lot of unforced errors.”
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