Carlos Alcaraz suggested that he was ‘not well mentally’ after crashing out of the US Open.

Speaking after his surprise defeat to Botic van de Zandschulp, he said: “Instead of taking steps forward, I’ve taken steps back in terms of my head and I don’t understand why.

“Because I came from a spectacular summer, from Roland Garros, from Wimbledon, coming out of there saying that mentally I had taken a step forward, like I had realised that to win big things or Grand Slams you had to be mentally tough.

“I come to this tour and it’s like I’ve taken steps back. It’s like I’m not well mentally. I’m not well, I’m not strong.

“Among the problems I have is that I don’t know how to control myself, I don’t know how to manage it and that’s a problem for me, really.”