Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday said that emulating Rafael Nadal’s and Novak Djokovic’s successes seems “impossible” after winning his maiden French Open title with victory over Alexander Zverev.
The 21-year-old came from behind to win 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 and claim his third Grand Slam triumph.
Alcaraz’s victory made him the youngest man to win Grand Slam titles on clay, grass and hard courts.
Photo: AFP
With Roger Federer retired, Nadal expected to hang up his racket this year and Djokovic having a poor season by his high standards, Alcaraz could be primed to dominate the sport for years to come.
Although he is already making history, he has some way to go to match Nadal’s record of 14 French Open titles or Djokovic’s men’s best total of 24 Grand Slams.
“Both things are out of the ordinary,” Alcaraz said. “You have to be an alien to get it. What Rafa did with 14 is practically impossible.”
Photo: Reuters
“The 24 Grand Slams I hope I can, but it is almost impossible. Both things are out of the ordinary,” he said. “Before facing this final, he [coach Juan Carlos Ferrero] told me: ‘You’re going to fight for your third Grand Slam title, with everything you have been through, and you know the difficult part of winning a Grand Slam, and Djokovic has 24.’ So it is unbelievable. Right now I can’t think about it.”
Alcaraz will next turn his attention to the grass-court season and the defense of his Wimbledon title, but he already has one eye on returning to Roland Garros next month for the Paris Olympics, where he is expected to play alongside 38-year-old Nadal in the doubles.
“When I come back here to the Olympics I will have flashbacks. It can be very nice, my first Games 40 days after winning my first Roland Garros,” he said. “I really want to fight to give my country a medal, be able to play doubles with my idol Rafa Nadal.”
He is the eighth Spanish man to win the Coupe des Mousquetaires.
“In Roland Garros, knowing all the Spanish players who have won this tournament and be able to put my name on that amazing list is something unbelievable,” Alcaraz told reporters. “Something that I dreamt about, being in this position, since I started playing tennis, since I was five, six years old. So it’s a great, great feeling.”
Third-ranked Alcaraz has already won three major titles, five Masters 1000 tournaments and become the youngest ever world No. 1, but said Sunday’s triumph was his proudest moment so far.
He had struggled with an arm injury in the buildup to the tournament, missing both the Monte Carlo Masters and the Rome Open, either side of a quarter-final loss to Andrey Rublev in Madrid.
“Right now lifting the Roland Garros trophy, knowing everything that I have been through the last month with the injuries and all that stuff, I don’t know. Probably this one,” he said. “Probably this one is the moment that I’m really proud about myself, because everything that I have done the last month just to be ready for this tournament. So I’m going to say this one is the most that I am proud about myself.”
Manchester United on Tuesday confirmed Michael Carrick as interim manager until the end of the season, tasking him with leading the Red Devils back into the UEFA Champions League. “Having the responsibility to lead Manchester United is an honor,” said Carrick, 44, who won 12 major trophies in his 12-year playing career at United. The former midfielder previously had an unbeaten three-game stint as caretaker boss at Old Trafford in 2021. Carrick then took on his first permanent managerial role at second-tier Middlesbrough in October 2022 and was sacked in June last year after the club finished 10th in the
Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg on Wednesday was ruled out for the second half of their 118-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets after the No. 1 pick sprained his left ankle in the first half. Flagg was called for a foul while defending against Peyton Watson and turned the ankle as he fell to the floor with 6 minutes, 1 second left in the second quarter. Flagg limped to the bench and continued to the locker room, but returned for the final 2 minutes, 35 seconds before the break. The 19-year-old did not come out for the second half before the announcement that
Yassine Bounou on Wednesday saved two penalties, while Youssef en-Nesyri netted the decisive spot-kick as hosts Morocco secured a 4-2 shoot-out victory over Nigeria following a 0-0 draw in a tense Africa Cup of Nations semi-final in Rabat. Morocco, seeking their first continental title in 50 years, are to face 2021 winners Senegal in Sunday’s decider in Rabat, while Nigeria take on Egypt in the third-place playoff tomorrow. The 120 minutes before the shoot-out had few clear-cut chances for either side, but it was Morocco who created more opportunities, although they were denied by some fine saves from Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali. Nigeria
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
RSS