Do not scratch your eyes.
Men’s tennis will never be the same.
A teenager has just tasted victory and become the world number 1.
But beyond all the noise, Just how good is Carlos Alcaraz really?
Background For those who don’t know much tennis, Carlos
Alcaraz Garfia is a wonderkid born in Murcia, Spain in 2003.
His father, Carlos was a tennis academy director at Real Sociedad Club de Campo de Murcia and
was once ranked in Spain's top 40, so it was only kinda natural that Alcaraz would take
a liking to the sport.
At the age of 4, Alcaraz was already playing tennis.
He grew up looking up to his idols, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
By 2018, he had joined the academy of a former world number one - Juan Carlos Ferrero.
It would be the start of a beautiful partnership.
But just before we talk about how far this partnership has gotten Alcaraz, let's go over
some predictions from legends and fellow players on Alcaraz.
What Players and Legends Have to Say It's still early hours on Monday, 12th of
September, 2022.
A tuckered out Alcaraz takes a second look at his phone just to be double sure of his
new status as the world number one in tennis but many had seen it coming.
How about we go through a couple of predictions made a few months earlier?
18-time grand slam champion, Chris Evert said, "...He's got the whole package and I know
I'm just sounding like everyone else when I say he's going to win multiple Grand Slams,
but he could be in the double digits in Grand Slams and become No. 1.
There's just nothing preventing him in my eyes.”
Spot on ma'am.
Following his loss to Alcaraz last year, former world number one Andy Murray also said, "It
wouldn't surprise me if he did really well in a Slam and was able to win long matches,
like long five-set matches, already...physically he seems, very, very strong...He is obviously
an excellent mover around the court as well."
Great prediction Andy.
He went all the way against Cilic, Sinner, and Tiafoe in 5 sets.
Here's what Jim Courier also said about the 6-foot Spaniard, “He makes a lot of adjustments,
he has creativity.
He has so many options that it's hard not to be excited about this player."
Well done Jim.
Who wasn't stoked to see a kid orchestrating crowds at Flushing Meadows?
All these thoughts and predictions couldn't be put into a better summary than when Rafael
Nadal said Alcaraz "has all the ingredients" necessary to become a great player."
Just a few months ago, we were raving about Alcaraz being the next big thing in tennis.
Looks like he outdid himself.
So, here is where things get a little more interesting.
The Roadmap to Alcaraz's success He didn't need any journeyman years to get
to the top.
He didn't need to lose a few slam finals before bagging one, it just came right off the bat.
Only an elite group consisting of Rafael Nadal, Michael Chang, Pete Sampras, Boris Becker,
and a few others truly know what this feels like.
Alcaraz turned pro in 2018, and like many other professional players, he started off
at the bottom of the food chain - The ITF World Tennis Tour.
3 titles at this stage saw him move up quickly to the ATP Challenger tour where he claimed
another 4 titles.
By February 2020 at the age of 16, Carlos was ready for the big stage.
He made his ATP debut at the Rio Open.
Well, it wasn't a fairytale start as he got defeated by Federico Coria in the second round.
The pandemic came and kinda slowed things down for a while but by the 2021 Australian
Open, Carlos' steady improvement saw him become the youngest participant in the competition.
He won his slam debut defeating a fellow qualifier in the first round before falling short in
the second round.
Next, Alcaraz faced fellow compatriot Nadal, who was about twice his age at the second
round of the Madrid Open.
Although he lost, an accumulation of points from the lower-ranked tours and the numerous
tournaments he participated in, saw him break into the Top 100 as the youngest player on
May 24th last year.
Alcaraz reached his first ATP tour final 2 months after and defeated Richard Gasquet
to claim his first title at Umag.
A deep run into the quarterfinals of the US Open saw him become the youngest to do so.
By the end of the year, he had defeated 3 Top 10 players - Tsitsipas, Berrettini, and
Sinner, broken into the Top 35, and won the Next Gen ATP finals.
Seeing his quality, it was somewhat easy to predict that Alcaraz would become one of the
best in the game, but hardly anyone saw it coming so soon.
The year would come with 5 titles - Trophies at Miami, Madrid, Rio, and Barcelona before
the big one at the Arthur Ashe stadium.
2 Masters 1000s, a maiden slam, and consistency in all tournaments were enough to launch Alcaraz
into number 1.
Let's remind ourselves that he wasn't even in the Top 20 at the beginning of the year.
But like the current world number 1 said, "To be the best, you have to beat the best."
and boy, he did.
At Madrid, he became the first man to defeat Nadal and Novak Djokovic in the same clay
court tournament at the quarters and semis before rounding it off in style against the
defending champion Alexander Zverev in the final, thereby defeating the top 3 seeds in
a tournament.
Well, since Alcaraz has a thing for defeating top seeds, let's see how his roadmap to success
stands up to the modern Big 3 of the sport Comparisons to the Big 3
Nadal - Turns pro at 15, wins 16 titles, 2 slams, and reaches world number 2 before turning
20, but doesn't become world number 1 until 22.
Djokovic - Turns pro in 2003 at 16.
Doesn't win his first ATP title until 19, a time he was ranked World number 63.
Loses his first slam final at 20, before a slam win a few months after but doesn't become
world number one until he's 24!
(Of course, no thanks to Nadal and Federer) Federer - Turns pro shortly before his 17th
birthday.
Didn't even break into the top 10 until he was close to his 21st birthday before winning
his first slam almost a year after.
Although a quick succession and a five-year period of dominance would follow.
And we have Alcaraz with his half-a-dozen ATP titles and the number 1 spot at 19.
The Spaniard's career trajectory so far closely resembles Nadal's, which is why some fans
have even called him the next Nadal.
Except that he isn't.
Pretty sure he would rather make a name for himself.
But based on what?
Biggest Weapon Let's get a bit more technical.
If we are to look at the depth, placement, and power behind Alcaraz's shots, you would
notice his biggest weapon - turning defense into offense.
He has done so on different surfaces and conditions, which makes him so special.
The Spaniard's incredible athleticism, sees him cover every inch of the court before reverting
to his reliable and potent forehand, capable of guaranteeing him high winner counts.
Even when unsuccessful, Carlos makes opponents hit the ball one more time.
No free points against the Spanish teenager.
High peak foot speeds, quick lateral movements, and a never-say-die attitude means that in
the blink of an eye, Alcaraz can transition from being on the back foot and chasing sharp
angled balls to going inside-out on his forehand.
Excluding returns, volleys, and overheads, 61% of his 320 groundstrokes in the final
were forehands.
But even half of those 195 shots were run-around forehands, showing how reliant Alcaraz is
on his forehand.
An all-court player, Carlos can count on his destructive forehand which he could vary by
adding some topspin or a greatly disguised dropshot to bail him out and open up court
positions for winners.
His style of play often leads opponents into unforced errors.
Little wonder Cilic, Sinner, and Tiafoe had a combined 181 unforced errors against Alcaraz.
Despite his obvious defensive skills, Alcaraz has not switched gears from his attack-minded
tennis.
An aggressive baseline play is complemented by an equally aggressive court positioning.
You could see Carlos coming close to the baseline or even inside it.
By taking the ball early often, he pushes opponents far behind, giving him enough time
to take better positions or simply reset.
Couldn't possibly imagine what 100% would look like.
But here's what I think.
Opinion Wasn't too long ago I put the feelers out
to see who would replace the Big 3 when they were gone.
How many names did we put up again?
About 15 or 20 I guess.
But it just seems like a distant memory now.
Tennis has a new king and it is safe to say that the future of tennis is in safe hands.
One could argue that Djokovic and Nadal just ain't done yet.
Hmm…Maybe.
But take no credit away from Alcaraz.
Humility.
No tantrums.
Borderline-genius tennis IQ.
A Novak Djokovic-resilience.
A Rafael-Nadal willpower.
What's more?
He's a terrific sportsman who has maintained incredibly high levels of tennis.
Carlos simply has it all.
If he manages to improve his serve and backhand, close out points faster, and stay injury-free,
we wouldn't be needing any tie-breakers to know the best player of the next decade.
There would only be one numero uno.
** What do you love most about Carlos Alcaraz?
Comment below!
Also, let's see what tennis legends have to say about him in this next video.