Carlos Alcaraz offered a standout moment of sportsmanship on Sunday during his fourth round match against Ben Shelton at the French Open where he called a foul on himself at a crucial moment at the start of the second set. Serving at 7-6, the defending champion approached the net off a forehand and placed a volley into the open court. Shelton scrambled and fired a powerful crosscourt forehand, forcing Alcaraz to stretch fully for the reply. The Spaniard managed to make contact and appeared to hit a clean volley winner. The point was initially awarded to Alcaraz, but the 22-year-old immediately alerted the umpire that he had lost his grip on the racquet mid-stretch and had made contact with the ball while it was no longer in his hand. As per extant rules, the point belonged to Shelton and the chair umpire reversed his decision. Just goes to show that Carlos is a champion in every sense of the word but more than that he is a true sportsman. He is a great role model for sport, much on the lines of his idol and fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal.
