'He has something special' - David Ferrer reveals moment he realised Carlos Alcaraz tennis talent

David Ferrer knew there was «something special» about Carlos Alcaraz on the day he first met his young compatriot. The meeting between the former world No. 3 and Alcaraz was arranged by Albert Molina, the 18-year-old's agent.

Ad/> The pair enjoyed some rallies on the hard court of the Alicante club, and they also played a tie-break. WTA MadridOsaka 'trying to learn' from Nadal and Swiatek, Andreescu is back — Madrid Open DiaryAN HOUR AGO “If he didn’t beat me, he was very close,” Ferrer told the ATP Tour Insider newsletter. “It was surprising to see his ball speed, but above all that I couldn’t hurt him with my flat ball.

He used his hands very well and I could see that he was very fast. For that age he had very good footwork and it was very difficult to hit a winner against him. “I’m not saying it to look clever, but right then I saw something special in him, something different to any other player.

Corretja says Tsitsipas got 'desperate' in Barcelona flashpoint with Alcaraz Osaka 'trying to learn' from Nadal and Swiatek, Andreescu is back — Madrid Open Diary 'Stay away from that' — Corretja warns Alcaraz about Nadal comparisons “I’ve trained with a lot of young boys. But when a 14-year-old copes with your tempo like that and you can see his desire to beat you in a tie-break – while always being respectful – it’s because he has something special.” Earlier this week, Alcaraz broke into the top 10 — the same age Nadal managed the feat — and Ferrer can understand why they are being mentioned in the same breath, although he is keen not to draw comparisons between the pair. “I see similar things in terms of the premature capacity to learn and the ambition,” the 27-time ATP Tour-level winner said.