"Damn Carlos Alcaraz slapped him back into reality" - Tennis fans react to Sebastian Korda retracting Wimbledon favorite claim after Queen's Club exit

Sebastian Korda has backtracked on his previous claim of being a favorite at Wimbledon 2023 after suffering a 6-3, 6-4 defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals of the Queen's Club Championships.

Korda began his grasscourt campaign with dominant wins over Dan Evans and fourth seed Frances Tiafoe at the ATP 500 event. The American lauded his grasscourt prowess after his win over Tiafoe and labeled himself one of the favorites at the upcoming Wimbledon Championships.

“I’m very confident in myself on the grass court. I move really well and definitely have a game that not very many people have, I’m an aggressive player, I like to come to the net, I have good hands, and I definitely feel as if I’m one of the favorites at Wimbledon," he said at the time.

The World No. 32 defeated fifth seed Cameron Norrie before taking on Alcaraz in the semifinals. Following his defeat to the Spaniard, however, Korda backtracked on his earlier statement.

“No. I don't know where that came from really. I'm pretty kind of just laid back (smiling). I don't know what I was probably thinking. Just kind of hyped up on the match that I played," Sebastian Korda told the press at Queen's Club.

Several fans were amused by Sebastian Korda seemingly losing all of his earlier confidence after his defeat to Alcaraz.

"Damn Carlos slapped him back into reality," a fan tweeted.

"One match against Alcaraz and he loses all of his confidence lol," another fan chimed in.

However, other fans empathized with the 22-year-old and lauded him for taking his statement back.

"He's starting to realise the pressure he has put himself by saying that and is back tracking. Understandable. Its good he feels confident but keep it under your hat a bit," a fan commented.

"Honestly we need more backtracking on insane statements in tennis lmao take notes guys," another user posted.

Here are a few more fan reactions:

"I love playing on grass, so who knows what could happen" - Sebastian Korda ahead of Wimbledon 2023

Carlos Alcaraz defeated Sebastian Korda in Queen's Club Championships SF

Despite backtracking on his claim about being a favorite at Wimbledon 2023, Korda emphasized his intention to maintain his self-belief and confidence heading into the grasscourt Major.

"You know, it's always a privilege kind of being in the position that I'm in. I have a big game, and, you know, I love playing on grass. So who knows what could happen, but I think one of the biggest things is to kind of have confidence in yourself and just to believe in yourself. I think those are the two biggest things that I can do for myself," Sebastian Korda said.

The 22-year-old made his Wimbledon debut in 2021. He reached the fourth round at SW19 by defeating Alex de Minaur, Antoine Hoang and Dan Evans before falling to Karen Khachanov.

Sebastian Korda was forced to withdraw from the grasscourt Major in 2022 due to shin splints and injuries to his feet.