Carlos Alcaraz said he didn’t know what happened during the third set of his 3-6 7-6(2) 7-6(3) win over 15th seed Hubert Hurkacz at the Canadian Open on Thursday.
The 20-year-old lost the first set but hit back in the next and then quickly took a 5-2 in the decider before fluffing match points which allowed his opponent to make things tight. But Alcaraz was able to close out the victory in the tiebreak to reach the quarter-finals.
Speaking after the match, the Spainard said that top players always find a way to succeed.
"Honestly, I didn't know what happened," Alcaraz said of his loss of form during the final set in Toronto. "I started feeling bad in that moment.
"I couldn't feel the right way in my shots. What I was thinking was to stay calm, try to find a way to overcome the problems and find the good feeling again. I think at 5-6 serving, I started to feel better.
"The big players have that feeling to find a way to stay alive and try to end the match playing well."
Wimbledon tennis champion Alcaraz is on a 14-match winning streak and next plays 12th seed Tommy Paul.
"In the tough moments you have to believe in yourself, try to go for it," said Alcaraz, whose style of play has been described by former world number one Andy Murray as "kamikaze" at times.
"It doesn't matter if you win or not. You have to believe you are going to play your best in that moment, try to play aggressive. I think in the two tie-breaks I did pretty well. That's why I got the win."