"My immediate thought was, 'What are you doing?'" - Serena Williams' ex-coach chastises Carlos Alcaraz for over-the-top celebrations against Djokovic

Serena Williams' former coach Rennae Stubbs has called out Carlos Alcaraz for excessive celebrations during his 2023 French Open semifinal against Novak Djokovic.

Alcaraz and Djokovic engaged in a thrilling battle during their highly anticipated clash. The match appeared to be an evenly-matched contest as the Serb claimed the first set before Alcaraz raised his level to clinch the second. However, the thrilling encounter took a turn when the Spaniard suffered severe cramping at 1-1 in the third set. Despite receiving treatment, the 20-year-old couldn't reach his previous level as Djokovic claimed a 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 victory and advanced to the final.

In the latest episode of 'The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast,' Stubbs asserted that the semifinal against Djokovic had taught Carlos Alcaraz a "very big lesson" on the importance of managing his nerves, anxiety, stress and excessive fist pumping.

“We all knew the match was going to be the semifinals and Alcaraz learned a very big lesson about when you go into these matches, you have to be able to be able to control your nerves, your anxiety level, your stress, your fist pumping," Stubbs said.

She recalled her disbelief over Alcaraz's passionate double-pump gesture after winning the second set, given that he still had to win two sets against the Serb.

"Even when he won the second set, he double-pumped to the crowd with his arms in the air. My first immediate thought when he did that was, ‘What are you doing.’ Like, yes that’s a big set, yes it’s a great achievement but man you’ve got to win two more of those against this guy," she added.

The Australian lauded Djokovic's ability to maintain his composure during tense five-set encounters and claimed that Carlos Alcaraz is yet to learn how to handle those moments effectively.

"So you’ve got to calm down, bring all the levels down, like everything, you’ve got to bring it all down. That’s what Novak does better than anybody. He’s able to manage a five set match. Even when he’s not playing well, you see him just be like ‘I’m going to be fine,’ and Alcaraz has to learn that, how to handle that moment," she said.

Carlos Alcaraz gears up for Queen's Club Championships after French Open cramping injury

Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon 2022

Following his exit from the French Open, Carlos Alcaraz will be back in action at the Queen's Club Championships in London, scheduled to begin on June 19. This will mark the Spaniard's maiden appearance at the ATP 500 event after he was forced to pull out of the tournament due to an elbow injury last year.

Alcaraz took to social media and expressed his anticipation for the impending commencement of his grass-court season ahead of Wimbledon 2023.

Also known as the Cinch Championships, the tournament will feature second seed Holger Rune, third seed Taylor Fritz and two-time defending champion Matteo Berretini alongside Carlos Alcaraz.