Some Australian Open viewers were not happy with the treatment of Carlos Alcaraz.Australian Open fans have been criticised for ‘over-sexualising’ Carlos Alcaraz after the Spaniard overcame Jack Draper in Melbourne. Members of the crowd were wowed when Alcaraz ripped off his shirt after the last-16 match.
In the blistering heat, the 21-year-old decided to change his shirt before his on-court interview. Fans whistled and cheered as they noticed a topless Alcaraz on court. A video of the moment went viral, with one supporter visibly saying ‘wow’.However, the reaction did not go down well among some viewers, who believed that Alcaraz was being ‘over-sexualised’. Others argued that there is a double standard in how men’s and women’s players are treated.
“Okay maybe I’m reaching but: He is over-sexualised. This I persona after all, not a spectacle for us. Image this happening to a woman,” X user @mtalks44 wrote.“Imagine if men did this with a female athlete. The woke would be out in force. FWIW it’s good harmless banter, but should go both ways,” @RyanDMartin added.
@The_Real_Ela said: “Just think what will happen if it’s a female! Immediately it becomes harassment.”
Alcaraz benefitted from Draper’s retirement through injury. The Englishman, 23, withdrew ahead of the third set with a hip injury that he described as a “ticking time bomb”.Draper trailed 7-5, 6-1 when he decided to pull out, having squeezed into the last-16 after winning a thrilling but gruelling five-setter against Aleksandar Vukic only 48 hours before heading on court to face Alcaraz.Alcaraz, who wrote a message of support for Draper on a court-side camera, admitted that he did not want to win in the way he did. He has set up a highly anticipated quarter-final against Novak Djokovic.“Obviously it’s not the way I wanted to get through to win matches,” Alcaraz said. “When I see someone that has to retire because of an injury, for me it’s not an easy moment.“I couldn’t tell anything to Jack in that moment. Just wish him a good recovery. Just said sorry. I saw him in the locker room [and wished] that I could speak more with him about it. But I just said that I’m going to see him soon playing his best again.”
Dr
aper added: “Considering everything I’m incredibly proud of my efforts. My tennis has been pretty bang-average. The whole week, it’s been really poor, actually, but it’s been my competitiveness, my fight, and my desire to win that has got me into the last-16 of a Grand Slam, which is something I’m very proud of.”