Paris, Oct 29 : Carlos Alcaraz arrived in Paris with clarity, confidence, and momentum but was left baffled with his loss to Britain's Cameron Norrie. The Spaniard admitted that Paris Masters is a tournament that is really difficult for him to play well.

Alcaraz, who was competing for the first time since he won his Tour-leading eighth title of the season in Tokyo in late September, was far from his best in his eighth ATP head-to-head meeting with Norrie.

The British lefty scored his first win over a world No.1 Alcaraz with a stunning 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over the best player in the world.

'I came here really well. I came here with a lot of energy. I came here thinking that I could do good results because I have been playing really good tennis,' said Alcaraz. "This is the best year for me in terms of playing at the end of the year. So I've been talking with some other players, with my team, that I feel great."

"Other years I felt exhausted, I felt tired, I felt mentally, physically. But this year I feel good. I skipped Shanghai. I have been at home for some days so I could enjoy myself there and relax, help the battery, so I don't know what happened here. It is a tournament that is really difficult for me to play well, but I will figure it out, and I will end up playing great tennis here, for sure," he added.

The defeat means that Alcaraz's fierce rival, Jannik Sinner, could reclaim the World No. 1 ranking if he wins his maiden title in Paris.

With less than two weeks to go until the Nitto ATP Finals, Alcaraz faces a quick turnaround to prepare in his quest for a first title at the year-end championships.

'I will try to prepare myself as best as I can, coming to Turin, coming to Davis Cup, really important tournaments that I have ahead right now

Right now I just want to be back home, and let's see what I'm going to do. But of course I'm going to practise and prepare myself, and obviously I will try not to let this happen again," said Alcaraz.

/IANS