Carlos Alcaraz may have knocked Tommy Paul out of the Australian Open, but the respect between them was seen after their match. Following his fourth-round exit, Paul received warm messages from both Alcaraz and his fiancée, Paige Lorenze, as the American promised to make his return next year.
Carlos Alcaraz and Paige Lorenze Show Support After Tommy Paul’s Australian Open Exit
World No. 1 Alcaraz beat the 19th-seeded Paul 7-6(6), 6-4, 7-5 to reach his third straight Australian Open quarterfinal. It was his toughest match of the tournament so far, and he had to rely on his full range of shotmaking to control the game.
Paul played quite strongly early on, jumping out to a 4-2 lead in the first set with some aggressive groundstrokes that put Alcaraz under pressure. But the Spaniard handled the pace and waited for his chances.
The important moment came in the first-set tiebreak. Paul saved a set point with a backhand down the line at 5/6, but then lost the set with a double fault at 6/7. After that, Alcaraz took control.
Even though Paul fought hard and saved three break points early in the third set, he couldn’t keep the pressure on once he lost the first set. Alcaraz got the break at 5-5 in the third and then served out the win after two hours and 44 minutes.
During the post-match interview, Alcaraz showed his respect for Paul’s game and said, “I think he started pretty strong. In the first game, serving, I thought I played a good game, but he came with really strong shots, really flat, and for me it was a bit difficult.”
After the match, Paul posted some pictures from the match on Instagram with the caption, “Till next year 🦘.” The post received some cheers from his opponent and people close to him. Alcaraz commented, “Let’s go TP🙏🏽,” while his fiancée and soon-to-be wife, Lorenze, commented, “I love you so much 💜💜💜.”
Paul Reflects on Alcaraz Loss and His Australian Open Takeaways
Paul didn’t mince words after his defeat to the Spaniard. “He totally outplayed me. I mean, I guess, the way that I would describe it is, he kind of like suffocates you in a way. He makes you feel like you have no time. He rushes you,” he said during the post-match press conference.
Paul was honest about his own performance and also pointed out his mistakes. “I hit my forehand terribly today, and he saw that early. He was trying to get in that forehand-to-forehand rally, and he did it much better than I did. That’s what it felt like. It felt like he got all the patterns he wanted, and I was having a tough time getting into the patterns that I wanted,” he said.
MORE: Carlos Alcaraz, Tommy Paul’s Australian Open Match Halted After Alarming Health Scare
Even so, the World No. 20 still found reasons to enjoy playing on a big stage against the best. “You know you’re going to have fun, at least,” Paul said. After missing the end of the 2025 season because of injury, he saw his Australian Open performance as a big positive.
“I’m overall leaving Australia pretty happy with where my body is at and where my game is at, for not playing for a while. I feel like I jumped right back into it pretty quick. So overall leaving happy,” said Paul. The loss may hurt him, but it also feels like a good starting point for the 2026 season.
