Tennis player
“My challenge for 2022 is to finish in the top 15, although I am ambitious and will fight to be in the ATP Finals in Turin,” says the Murcian tennis player
There is Carlos Alcaraz (El Palmar, 18 years old) who has just arrived in Madrid, after being crowned on Saturday at the Under-21 Masters in Milan and making a quick stopover in Seville, where on Sunday he enjoyed himself like a small child from the box at the La stadium. Cartuja of the triumph of the Spanish soccer team against Sweden (1-0) that qualified Luis Enrique’s men for the Qatar World Cup. Luis Rubiales, president of the RFEF, gave him a shirt with his name at half-time. He attends LA VERDAD before starting to prepare his participation in the Davis Cup, along with Feliciano López, Pablo Carreño, Roberto Bautista and Marcel Granollers. Russia and Ecuador await the team led by Sergi Bruguera from November 25. Without Rafa Nadal, the challenge of repeating the 2019 title is enormous.
-How did the party of Spain live in La Cartuja?
-It was wonderful. I had a great time. I’m always training or playing and I can’t watch football live. In fact, he had never been to a football stadium. And it was incredible, for the atmosphere of 55,000 people cheering for the team and for how the game ended, with Morata’s goal and qualification for the 2022 World Cup.
-You are a Madridista, right?
-Yes. Very Madridista. But the selection is special. It is the team that unites us all Spaniards and excites us equally. When Spain plays, we all park our colors and go together for the same goal.
–We chatted in April at his academy, the JC Ferrero Equelite de Villena, and he confessed to me that his goal was to finish the season in the top 50. The 32nd is already there. This has gone even better than expected.
-I’ve surprised myself. Winning 32 games in my first year in the ATP is a great motivation for 2022. I am in 32nd place and the goal was to break into the ‘Top 50’. I did not expect to get so high and the balance that I get is super positive. We have exceeded the goal set.
The phrases
-
32nd of the ATP
“I have surprised myself by winning 32 games this year. I am achieving the objectives very soon » -
The Milan title
«I have played calmly and with a lot of confidence. I learned from the defeat to Gaston in Paris »
-Last week in Milan he played the champion. He only lost one set and was seen at all times controlling the situation. Have you learned to calm down after the ordeal lived in defeat with Hugo Gaston in Paris Bercy?
-The truth is that I have played very calmly and with great confidence throughout the week in Milan. I lost the game against Gaston because I didn’t know how to control myself and the situation got over me. I had never played against the public and I was not able to get out of that bad moment. I had a hard time, but already cold I understood that this was part of learning. And I think it served me well. In Milan I have enjoyed at all times.
-What did you feel in Paris when you saw that for the first time there were 14,000 spectators against you?
-It was a new sensation. Everything is being new this year for me. I have just arrived at the circuit and it is normal that I see everything with the eyes of the newbie that I am.
-He was also blocked last May in Madrid, when he faced Rafa Nadal. The nerves played a trick on him and he was also injured.
-I learned a lot from that game with Nadal. It was a dream to play against him on my 18th birthday. It swept me, but I left the track smiling. I always try to get the positive out of all the experiences I have had, knowing that defeats always lead to interesting readings.
-What explanation do you have for this? Why is everything going faster than expected?
-I am achieving the objectives very soon. Juan Carlos’s advice [Ferrero] are key. He always instills in me the importance of daily work. And the support of Albert [Molina] is very good. He was the manager of David Ferrer and Nico Almagro. It also carries Pablo Carreño. Meet the elite and know what I need. My family gives me that point of balance and naturalness that I need right now.
-The year is not over yet. The final fireworks await him in Madrid: his Davis Cup debut.
-It’s a dream to be able to debut at Davis, but the truth is that I still don’t know if I’m going to play. I haven’t spoken to the captain yet [Sergi Bruguera] And if you give me the opportunity it will be wonderful. I was with my family in the bullring of Valencia in that tie [contra Alemania en abril de 2018] in which David Ferrer won the fifth point from Kohlschreiber. And it was tremendous. If I make my debut in Madrid, it will be even more tremendous. At least for me [se ríe].
-What was your best game of the year?
-The victories against Tsitsipas in New York and against Berrettini in Vienna were incredible, but a game that is not talked about much and in which I enjoyed a lot was the semifinal against Albert Ramos in Umag. It was also special to face Zverev for the first time in Acapulco.
-What objective is set for 2022?
-My challenge is to finish the year in the top 15 of the circuit, although I am an ambitious boy and I will fight to be in the ATP Finals in Turin [lo juegan los ocho primeros de la ATP]. I am improving in all facets of my game and that is the most important thing for an 18 year old like me.
-He likes to fish with his father and spend time with his friends from El Palmar. But both are getting complicated. Is that so?
-I have little free time, just a day or two after each tournament. I try to disconnect at home with my family and friends, but it is true that I do not have time for hobbies.
-How do you carry the media tsunami around you, the waterfall of praise and all the comparisons with Rafa Nadal?
-I think I’m doing well. I read that it is published in the media and I appreciate the support of everyone, but I do not pay much attention to what is around. I focus on my work and my team supports me and helps me.
.