Sebastian Korda praises John McEnroe’s ‘soul searching’ advice after Carlos Alcaraz upset | ATP Tour

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Korda praises McEnroe’s ‘soul searching’ advice after Alcaraz upset

The 25-year-old American is considering meeting McEnroe earlier this season

March 23, 2026

Sebastian Korda’s successful victory over World No. 1 at the Miami Open that Itau presented on Sunday may have its roots in a recent conversation with another former number 1: John McEnroe.

The 25-year-old American produced the biggest win of his career to defeat Carlos Alcaraz in three sets and reach the fourth round in Miami. After that, Korda pointed to an important meeting earlier this season with ATP No.

“In Dallas I was actually very lucky. John McEnroe was playing a show there,” Korda explained, talking about meeting McEnroe at the ATP 500 in Dallas in February. “He took a few minutes out of his day to talk to me about one of the things we talked about: finding your identity in court. [We] I’m just talking about how I am as a person, the things I carry with me.

“He was beautiful. Especially [with] a player like him, he just sees how he sees my game, what he thinks I can use to try to play better tennis. One of the things he said was, ‘You have to go and search for your soul. You have to find out who you are. You have to find out why you play tennis, why you like tennis.’ I think that’s been a big key for me. Thank you for taking time out of your day to do that.”

Korda’s path back to this level was far from straightforward. World No. The former 15 was sidelined for more than two and a half months in 2025 with a right shin stress fracture, after which he dropped to No. 86 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Although he returned late in the season, it is now, during the North American swing in early 2026, that he is starting to find his rhythm again.

After a first-round exit to Michael Zheng at the Australian Open, Korda chose to compete at the ATP Challenger event in San Diego, where he reached the final. Soon after his meeting with McEnroe came in Dallas – a moment he now considers important – before he continued that momentum in Delray Beach, where he lifted his third ATP Tour title.

Now in Miami, he is one win away from matching his best result in a Masters 1000 event, having advanced to the quarter-finals in South Florida in 2021 and 2025.

“I needed some things. That’s why I went to play in San Diego, to try to put myself in those stressful situations,” Korda said when asked about his decision to compete in San Diego. “I was injured for a long time, missed many months, and went through a really dark hole.

“Obviously I wasn’t playing the tennis I was playing today. Mainly mentally, I didn’t feel right. It gave me a little boost of confidence to put myself back in those pressure situations, put myself in the game, survive those bad moments during the match, those pressure spots. It really helped me. If I didn’t play well in San Diego, I wouldn’t be here.”

That renewed clarity was evident in his stunning encounter with Alcaraz, his first meeting with the World No.

As most of the crowd heard the return of Alcaraz, Korda was tasked with bracing himself again. However, the 25-year-old rose to the occasion, regaining control in the third period to seal a statement victory, handing the seniors their second defeat in three games.

“I love playing in a hostile environment,” Korda said when asked about the crowd. “Luckily I’ve played my best tennis when the crowd is against you. But they were good on both sides. They weren’t doing anything for me. It’s a lot of fun, especially when the crowd is going.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s for me or against me, I really enjoy playing in those places, I hope I can keep going up. I hope people come and support me again [will] just try to enjoy the moment more.”

Korda’s progress has also coincided with the latest addition to his team, former Top 40 player Ryan Harrison who joined his training program last month. The partnership, Korda explained, brought a sense of balance that began to show in his works.

“It’s a lot of fun. We work really hard. I think one of the best things about Ryan is that we do the work, we talk about it, we talk, and we try to be normal,” Korda said. “We don’t try to overdo it with tennis or try to have too many emotions.

“I think that was really helping me, even after difficult games, we talk about it, move on, learn from our mistakes, finally I’m happy again.”

Next up for Korda in Miami is a maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with 20-year-old Spanish qualifier Martin Landaluce, who is competing in the fourth round of a Masters 1000 event for the first time in his young career.