2023-06-26 13:11:33
Carlos Alcaraz defeated De Miñaur in the Queen’s final and conquered a new frontier. Barely a month and a half after turning 20, he can already boast of having titles on all surfaces. He lacked one on grass and he already achieved it in London. The first on clay was in Sopot, in 2021, at the age of 18; and the first on a hard court, the Miami Masters 1,000, still not having turned 19.
Before the “Big 3”
That his numbers are compared with those of the “Big 3” only speaks of what he is achieving is extraordinary. As for precocity, in this section he has gone faster than the three legends. Novak Djokovic won on clay (Amersfoort) and on hard court (Metz) in 2006, at the age of 19; and he had to wait until he was 24, until 2011, to successfully step on the grass, although he went big with the conquest of Wimbledon. In the case of Rafa Nadal, his first title on clay came in Sopot in 2004, at the age of 18, and the following year he triumphed on the hard court of the Canadian Masters 1,000, already at 19 and with a Roland Garros in his record. The success on grass was in 2008 at Wimbledon, a month after turning 22, in what for many is the best match in tennis history. The two previous editions had already played the final at the All England Club. For his part, Roger Federer made his debut in Milan in 2001 (at the age of 19), in a tournament that was played on carpet, a surface that disappeared in 2009. His first cup on a hard court was achieved in Sydney in 2002, at the age of 20, the same ones he had when he won on brick dust in Hamburg. In 2003, a month shy of turning 22, he began his reign on grass with victory in Halle, as a preview of his first Wimbledon.
Favorite at Wimbledon?
It took the Swiss four years on the circuit to win his first title on grass; Rafa, five; and Djokovic, six, while Alcaraz has achieved it in three. “It’s incredible,” answers the Murcian in an interview with Efe. “It is true that in the past it was a little more complicated. There were more servers, the grass was different, much faster, but I’m not going to take credit for it either. I am very happy that in such a short period I was able to play so well on grass”, he added.
That triumph in the charismatic London tournament returns him to number one and gives him confidence to face what he does not hesitate to point out as one of his dreams: Wimbledon. “I feel like one of the favorites for Wimbledon, but honestly, I need more experience, I’ve only played eleven matches on grass,” Carlos was honest. Djokovic has played 127, which has helped him win seven times in All England, including the last four (he has not lost there since 2017, and in 2020 it was not played due to the pandemic), and one in Eastbourne. With these numbers, there is no doubt that the Serbian starts as the main candidate for the big event from July 3 to 16.
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