Carlos Alcaraz admits that the prospect of him matching the records set by the Big Three of men’s tennis might be ‘near-on impossible’ but he is determined to give it his best try.
The 19-year-old has become the youngest player in history to reach No.1 in the ATP rankings this week after winning the US Open on Sunday. At Flushing Meadows Alcaraz defeated Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(7-1), 6-3, to conclude his fairytale run at the tournament where he also won three consecutive five-set matches. He has won a total of five titles this season after claiming two Masters 1000 and two ATP 500 trophies earlier this year.
Now the youngest major winner in men’s tennis since Rafael Nadal at the 2005 French Open, Alcaraz has positioned himself as a strong successor to the Big Three when their reign finally ends. A term used to describe the trio of Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. Earlier this year he achieved the rare milestone of scoring consecutive wins over Nadal and Djokovic at the same tournament in Madrid. Although he is yet to play Federer who has been absent from the Tour for over a year due to a knee injury.
“Play against Federer, although right now I have few chances, I think, but it would be something that I would like. And beat one of the three in a Grand Slam. I have always said that to be the best you have to beat the best,” said Alcaraz.
Alcaraz admits that he still has plenty of room for improvement in his game. His long-time coach Juan Carlos Ferrero told reporters in New York on Sunday that he believes the new No.1 is only playing at 60% of his potential.
However, this hasn’t stopped the Spaniard from setting out some ambitious goals for the future with him aiming to get as close as possible to the historic Grand Slam tally haul of the Big Three. Between them, they have won 63 majors with Nadal holding the men’s all-time individual record of 22.
“It feels great to be in that position is something that I dreamed of since I started playing tennis. It’s something special for me. I’m not in my top [condition]. I have a lot of things to improve,” he said during an interview with BBC World Service.
“They [Nadal, Djokovic, Federer] inspire me to try and catch them. I know it’s near-on impossible but I’m going to work for it. I want to be remembered like them, I want to work so I can try and be like them one day.”
Incredibly Alcaraz isn’t taking a break from the sport following his marathon run at the US Open. On Tuesday he arrived in Valencia ahead of his country’s Davis Cup competition. It is still not confirmed if he will play in the tournament but Spanish captain Sergi Bruguera is optimistic.
“Hopefully he can recover as soon as possible. We don’t know yet if he will be able to play on Wednesday.” Bruguera told reporters.
“We all knew it was going to happen sooner or later (that Alcaraz would win a Grand Slam). But the way he won three matches in five sets is an incredible effort mentally as well as physically. Being the youngest No. 1 in the world, there aren’t any words.” He added.
Speaking about the competition, Alcaraz states that he intends to help his team as much as he can. Spain will play Canada, Serbia and South Korea over the coming week. The top two countries will then qualify for the Davis Cup Finals in November.
“I’m very proud to arrive as No. 1 and do my bit for the team,” Alcaraz said on Tuesday.“Playing the Davis Cup is always special. It’s a unique atmosphere and I’m looking forward to being with the team.”
Alcaraz is currently the only ATP player this year to have achieved 50 or more wins on the Tour.