Carlos Alaraz targets heirs of the "Big Three": "Want to be remembered like them"
Carlos Alcaraz has finally arrived at the top of tennis with his triumph at the US Open. However, the Spaniard has set much higher goals for himself.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit:
Sep 15, 2022, 07:47 am
A guy like Carlos Alcaraz really had to come along to slowly but surely herald the beginning of the end of the reigns of the big three, the reigns of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. A guy who, at just 19, already has victories against Nadal and Djokovic on his record. A guy who already has two ATP Masters 1000 titles and a Grand Slam win. And a guy who already has his place in the history books of tennis with this Monday as the youngest number one of all time.
There is no trace of great ambitions to rest on the laurels of Carlos Alcaraz, who, just a few hours after the greatest success of his career to date, is making an exclamation point towards the competition: "It's a great feeling to be in this position. I get that dreamed of since I started playing tennis. It's something special for me, " Alcaraz recently told the BBC , but: "I'm not in my best shape. I still have a lot of things to improve."
Alcaraz blows to attack the Big Three
After the US Open triumph, trainer Juan Carlos Ferrero even went so far as to attest the 19-year-old's potential of only 60%. Well, what else is to come? Alcaraz knows: the general attack on the legacy of the Big Three. "They (note Nadal, Djokovic, Federer) inspire me to try to catch up with them. I know it's almost impossible, but I'll work towards it. I want to be remembered like them, I want to work so that I one day be like her. "
So the goal of the Spaniard is not far off, to put a representative of the big three in their place at Grand Slam level. Something for which there was no opportunity at the US Open and before that, a possible semi-final duel with compatriot Nadal in New York City burst after his exit in the round of 16. "I've always said that to be the best, you have to beat the best," emphasizes Alcaraz. It will also need that if Alcaraz really wants to take on the great legacy of the big three. The legacy of those gentlemen who have already won 63 Grand Slam titles as a collective.