Carlos Alcaraz, 19, is the new darling of Spanish but also world tennis. Here is what you need to know about the one who is called to become the next boss of the circuit.
By offering himself the Masters 1000 in Madrid on Sunday, his second major tournament (after that of Miami), by sweeping the world n°3 Alexander Zverev in the final, the young Iberian prodigy confirmed his status as a phenomenon, he who has been presented since a few weeks as the new Rafael Nadal.
Moreover, during his triumphal week in the Spanish capital, Carlos Alcacraz, who is trained by the former world No. 1, Juan Carlos Ferrero, beat “Rafa” in the quarter-finals before imposing his law on Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. And to continue the comparison with Nadal, last week he became the youngest player to enter the top 10 in the ATP rankings (9th) since … Nadal, in 2005.
The native of El Palmar, near Murcia in southeastern Spain, has always impressed. At 15, he won his first match in a Challenger tournament in Alicante in April 2019. The following year, he revealed himself at the ATP 500 tournament in Rio de Janeiro, where he received an invitation.
Like Rafael Nadal at Roland-Garros?
At 16, when he is ranked 406th in the world, Alcaraz eliminates Albert Ramos-Viñolas (n°41) in the first round before losing to Federico Coria. He is then the youngest player to win a match on the ATP Tour since 2013 and the youngest to break a top 50 since 2003. In 2021, after a first round at the Australian Open and a third round at Roland- Garros, he stood out at the US Open, reaching the quarter-finals after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in five sets and more than four hours of play.
With five titles, including the Next Gen, the tournament reserved for the best young players, Carlos Alcaraz, who has a style validated by the greatest (former and present) is beginning to build a record. And he intends to afford a first Grand Slam this year. And why not Roland-Garros (May 22-June 5)?
He is slowly establishing himself as one of the favorites in any case, even if he will have to manage the fact that the tournament lasts two weeks. Still, Rafael Nadal was the same age when he first won Roland-Garros in 2005…