The young Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcarazconsidered by many to be the likely successor to Rafael Nadalsaid this Friday that he is ready for “big things” at the Rio de Janeiro Open, the only ATP 500 tournament in South America, which will take place starting Monday.
The 18-year-old from Murcia, who played the 2020 Rio Open at the age of 16 as a guest and when he was already considered a revelation, stated that in his debut in the Brazilian tournament he realized that he could beat great players and that he returns with the intention to do so.
“Since the first time I came I have grown a lot both as a player and as a person and now I believe that I am already consolidated in the circuit and that the other players know me. I consider myself one of them and I believe that I am capable of doing great things in this opportunity in Rio,” the Spaniard said at a press conference when questioned by Efe about his expectations.
“The Rio Open is a very good tournament to which great players come, but I am confident in my game and the level I am giving, and I think I can have a great tournament here,” he added.
alcaraz He played the previous edition of the Rio Open when he was ranked 406th in the world ranking and returns to this Brazilian city in position 29 in the ATP ranking and as one of the favorites for the title.
The Spaniard played his first ATP tournament in Rio de Janeiro and won his first victory on the circuit by defeating his compatriot Alberto Ramos, then 41 in the world, in a duel of more than three hours that ended at 4 in the morning.
“It was the longest match I’ve played in my career to the best of three sets. It was a special victory. To have beaten Albert Ramos in my first ATP it was very nice and made me realize that I could beat great players, and it helped me grow, but then the pandemic started and everything was interrupted,” he said.
He has since grown to reach the quarterfinals of the US Open, making him the youngest to reach that stage at a Grand Slam tournament since Michael Chang achieved the feat in 1990 at Roland Garros.
The Spaniard also won his first ATP 250 title, that of Umag, and is the youngest to break into the top 40 of the world rankings since Rafael Nadal he did it in 2004.
That is why he does not rule out even surprising with the title in Rio.
“Obviously at every tournament I go to I think I can win and I want to win every tournament I go to. I am confident in the level I am giving. I have already beaten very good players and I have already stood up to almost all the players and I think that, if I play at a high level and with confidence as I have been doing, I can reach the final”, he said.
About the comparisons with Nadalwho initially bothered him, said he is more mature to resist that pressure.
“Comparisons never bothered me, but it is true that I don’t like them very much. I try not to give it the importance of being compared to Rafael Nadal. Everyone has to follow their path and I would like people to know me as Carlos Alcaraz and not like Rafael Nadal. Now I am a more mature boy who knows how to manage that pressure but it is something that I have tried not to give importance to,” he said.
About the feat achieved by Nadal this year when he won the Australian Open, the twenty-first Grand Slam title in his record, he affirmed that he celebrated it as if it were his own.
“The truth is that it was incredible. It was incredible. I remember seeing it at home and celebrating it as if I had won the Grand Slam. It is an example to follow,” he stressed.
The Italian is also registered in the Rio Open Matteo Berrettiniseventh in the ATP ranking, the Norwegian Casper Ruud (8), the Argentine Diego Schwartzmann (13), the Austrian Dominic Thiem (16) and the Chilean Christian Garin (19).