‘If Alcaraz hadn’t received treatment, that would have been the real scandal’
3 min readFeb 1, 2026 04:28 PM IST
Patrick Mouratoglou says Alexander Zverev’s claims that Carlos Alcaraz received “special treatment” While cramping, has a nuanced argument.
Taking to LinkedIn, after reiterating his thoughts on a podcast, Mouratoglou said tennis needed to consider to get real about Rulebooks. “In the world of professional tennis, there is the Rulebook, and then there is Reality. When reality follows its course, we shouldn’t pretend it’s a scandal. Alexander Zverev suggested that Carlos Alcaraz receives “special treatment,” pointing to how Alcaraz dealt with cramping during their Australian Open semifinal as proof. I see it differently: Unfairness isn’t about what’s on paper; it’s about inconsistent application. If Alcaraz hadn’t received treatment, that would have been the real scandal,” the famous French coach of Serena Williams who went on to coach Grigor Dimitrov and Harold Rune said.
Why? “Because the “rule” on cramping is one of the most misunderstood—and most flexible—areas of the game. Having watched and coached for the last 25 years, I can tell you: players who cramp almost always receive medical attention,” Mouratoglou noted.
On paper, the rules are strict, he added.
No Medical Timeouts (MTO) for cramps: You don’t get the 3-minute grace period reserved for acute injuries. “This is Zverev’s point, and technically, he’s right,” he added. The Changeover Limit, the coach said, was restricted to treatment during 90-second changeovers or 120-second set breaks (maximum two sessions).
“⚠️ But here is the Gray Area” Mouratoglou wrote. “We constantly see chair umpires and physios navigate a very thin line. If a physio “evaluates” a player and determines the condition might be an injury (like Alcaraz’s adductor) rather than “just” a cramp, the MTO is granted,” he noted.
Mouratoglou likeness it to coaching shooshah before it got legalised. “It’s exactly like coaching before it was legalized: Everyone did it, and almost every umpire tolerated it. The only “scandal” was when an official decided to be pushy about applying the letter of the law,” he said.
Denying treatment for cramps is frankly cruel.
Mouratoglou however highlighted that if a rule was repeatedly excused for fair reason, it held no value anymore. “If a rule has no value in practice because it’s ignored for everyone, we can’t cry foul when the top seeds benefit from that same status quo,” he said.
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