A packed tennis stadium in Sabadell, a suburb of Barcelona. Carlos Alcaraz slides to the corner on the gravel to chip back the service of Australian Alex de Minaur. His ball bounces far too short behind the net. Two match points behind, the ATP tournament in Barcelona threatens to end in the semifinals in April for the great Spanish talent.
Alcaraz starts running. Only the youthful pimples on his cheeks reveal that he is eighteen years old. His striking arm is as massive as a muscular thirty-something’s arm, and that’s how he plays tennis. Mature and with an extra gear when the competition calls for it.
The Minaur smashes a forehand through the middle. Alcaraz runs past the ball and hits from behind his body, with a flick of the wrist, a subtle forehand that floats past the stunned Australian in slow motion. It’s a ball that really can’t, and that at the best possible moment. Alcaraz wins the game and also the tournament.
The ingenuity reminds tennis fans of Roger Federer: inventing new strokes in difficult situations, that’s what the Swiss is known for. The light-footed ‘dancing’ of the front feet on the court, effective but also aesthetic, is something that Alcaraz seems to have adopted from Federer (40).
Young in the top-10
In Barcelona, Alcaraz won his third tournament in 2022 last month, after victories in Rio de Janeiro and Miami. He is now number nine in the world rankings, his highest position ever. He is the youngest player in the top-10 since his compatriot Rafael Nadal (now 35) 17 years ago. He also reached that milestone after a tournament victory in Barcelona.
„His game is electric”, said Paul Annacone, former coach of Federer and Pete Sampras this year The New York Times† “I think he was born for great things.” The American Rick Macci, once trainer of, among others, Venus and Serena Williams, and Andy Roddick is completely lyrical. In a video Last month he called Alcaraz the greatest talent he has seen in the last thirty years, even bigger than Federer and Nadal.
And then also Novak Djokovic (34), about whom it was gently whispered in 2006 that he would become number 1 in the world after the Serb won his first ATP tournament, in Amersfoort. But at Alcaraz, it’s like everyone is walking around with a megaphone and trumpeting that he is the new tennis prodigy.
That is not strange. Of the eight players who reached the top-10 before Alacaraz before the age of 19, five became number 1 in the world: the Swedes Björn Borg and Mats Wilander, the German Boris Becker, the American Andre Agassi and Nadal.
Greek top player Stefanos Tsitsipas said at the US Open last year that he had never seen a tennis player hit a ball so hard. Then he was still full of praise for Alcaraz. Last week in the quarter-final in Barcelona, Tsitsipas lost to the Spaniard for the third time and became so frustrated with his good play that he tried to hit him on purpose – but failed.
The symbolism radiated from that inappropriate action. Tsitsipas (23) seemed destined, with the Russian Daniil Medvedev (26) and the German Alexander Zverev (25) to form the new top three. But on the way to the top they seem to be passed by the much younger Alacaraz, who is also very popular with his exemplary behavior on the course and special play.
Carlos Alcaraz, born on May 5, 2003 in Murcia, southern Spain, started playing tennis at the age of three. His parents lacked the means to support a professional career, but close friends offered the family financial support.
His forehand is rock-hard, the result of an arm movement that is barely visible to the naked eye. Alcaraz combines that shot with a perfect drop shot. When opponents on the court take a few steps back, the Spaniard strokes the yellow hairs of the ball with his strings and lays it dead behind the net.
Coach Ferrero
Crucial in the advance of Alcaraz is his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero (42), the Spanish former number 1 in the world who defeated the Dutchman Martin Verkerk in the 2003 Roland Garros final. Ferrero was known for his stylish tennis style and good footwork.
The Spanish sports journalist Nacho Albarran of sports newspaper ASH has been following Alcaraz for years. He sees that Alcaraz has remained modest, partly because of the calm Ferrero. “Carlos has often said that ‘Juanki’, as he calls him, is important to his game and to his life. They talk about everything together, not just tennis,” says Albarran.
Due to its recent success, Alcaraz is becoming more popular in Spain by the day, Albarran sees. “The expectations are extremely high. Many people in Spain expect a brilliant future for Carlos. He is already an idol for children. But I don’t think we should compare him to Federer, Nadal and Djokovic yet. That is still a bit too much.”
Alcaraz starts this week in the clay court in Madrid as one of the favorites, just like in the following weeks in Rome and Paris. The Spaniard is the last to take the pressure off himself. After his tournament win in Miami, he answered the question whether he can win Roland Garros: „I think so. I have the fitness, confidence and mentality to achieve that. I’m not afraid to say I’m ready for a Grand Slam title.”