India, March 25 -- The two back-to-back setbacks in the Sunshine Double in less than a week have left many sounding the alarm bells for Carlos Alcaraz. Even more so after his shocking third-round exit at the Miami Open last Monday against American Sebastian Korda. But Rafael Nadal was quick to shut down the narrative, saying the criticism is overblown.

After a 17-0 start to the 2026 calendar year - which included a historic Australian Open title and another in Qatar - Alcaraz's unbeaten run was snapped in the Indian Wells semi-finals by Daniil Medvedev. The following week, he suffered a second consecutive early exit at the Miami Open, losing to Korda in three sets.

Speaking at an event in Madrid on Tuesday, Nadal said the questions, dou...