Roger Federer talks Alcaraz's Slam quest, 'legend' Serena - ESPN

As Roger Federer held court on contemporary tennis at the Australian Open, the 20-time major winner was as diplomatic as ever, saying he wouldn't be the one to remind Carlos Alcaraz about how hard it is to complete a career Grand Slam.

Federer won five US Open titles, five at Wimbledon and three in Australia before he finally completed his career Grand Slam in 2009 with a victory at Roland Garros, where Rafael Nadal was dominant on the clay.

Top-ranked Alcaraz won the back-to-back Wimbledon titles in 2023 and 2024, two French titles in a row in 2024 and last year, and the US Open in 2022 and last year. He has never gone past the quarterfinals in Australia, where rival Jannik Sinner has won the past two titles.

«He knows about it. It's like Rory [McIlroy] going for the Masters, you know, those things are tough,» Federer said Thursday, shortly after the draw was held for the first major of the year. «His momentum shifts toward the first round, and then it's point for point mentality. That's what it is.

»But it's true, at his young age, to be able to complete the career Grand Slam already now, I mean, would be crazy.… I hope he does because for the game, that would be an unbelievable special moment."

Alcaraz hasn't been shy about telling the world that he wants to win the Australian Open to complete a career Grand Slam.

That would make him the ninth man in tennis history with at least one singles championship from each of the sport's four most prestigious tournaments — and at 22 years and just under 9 months old at the event's conclusion, the youngest.

«It's going to be my first tournament of the season, and it's really the main goal for me,» Alcaraz told The Associated Press. «I'm going to do the preseason just focused for