Stefanos Tsitsipas believes Carlos Alcaraz can be 'next Rafael Nadal' and sees 'a lot of similarities'

Stefanos Tsitsipas believes that Carlos Alcaraz could be the next Rafael Nadal of tennis. Alcaraz has stormed to the top of the game over the last 18 months, winning his first Grand Slam at the age of 19, just as Nadal did, and becoming the youngest-ever men’s world No. 1.

Ad While Alcaraz has played down comparisons with his fellow Spaniard, his explosive talent has generated as much excitement as any young player in recent years. ATP Monte CarloFlawless Fritz shocks defending champion Tsitsipas to reach semi-finals14/04/2023 AT 12:44 He has been tipped by 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal to «win a lot of Grand Slams». Alcaraz will lead the field at this week’s Barcelona Open with Nadal absent as he continues to recover from injury.

Talking about Nadal, world No. 5 Tsitsipas said: «He definitely offers a lot to our sport. And when he's around, you can feel his presence and his energy and how hard he works for every point.

And his spirit, the spirit that he puts out on the court is an example.' “'We have someone that looks a little bit like him, which is Carlos Alcaraz, in terms of how he gets to every ball on the court and how he covers pretty much half of the planet when he plays. “So they have a lot of similarities, and I think he [Alcaraz] could be the next Rafael Nadal of our tennis.” Tsitsipas was beaten in the quarter-finals of last year’s Barcelona Open by Alcaraz. He has also lost both other career meetings against the 19-year-old, who is the defending champion in Barcelona.