Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz is talk of the tour – even in his absence

An apt indication of just how much discussion the rise of Carlos Alcaraz has generated came on Monday in Rafael Nadal’s pre-tournament press conference at the Italian Open. Wary of how often Nadal has already had to discuss his young compatriot in recent months, a journalist introduced their question by expressing their hope that Nadal would not be annoyed by yet more Alcaraz talk to come. “I will never be annoyed about answering questions about colleague of mine,” Nadal responded.

Alcaraz will not be seen in Rome this year. Shortly after his breathless triumph against Alexander Zverev in the final of the Madrid Open on Sunday, he announced he would be withdrawing from the tournament in order to recuperate before the French Open begins. Still, his rise has been the defining story of the past two months and his success will continue to loom over the tour until the French Open begins.

“He definitely is special,” said Novak Djokovic, who lost against Alcaraz in the semi-final in Madrid. “I mean, already he’s breaking a lot of records as a teenager, winning two Masters events this year, a couple of 500s. So far he’s the best player in the world, no question, this year with the results that he’s been doing.”

So far this year, Alcaraz has compiled an absurd 28-3 (90%) record, he has won four titles in as many months including two Masters 1000 victories in Miami and Madrid and two ATP 500 events. He has been clinical against the very best, winning eight of his past nine matches against top-10 players.

While he was already far above the curve when he was ranked 120th in May 2021, now he is sixth in the ATP rankings and second in the ATP race. The respect he has already garnered was further shown by Nadal ‘s lack of surprise at