Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz has been a force in men’s tennis since he entered the ATP tour. In 2022, he became the youngest man to reach the world number ranking at 19 years and four months. Let’s take a look at how he got to the top of the tennis world.

Everything you need to know about Carlos Alcaraz

Early Years

Carlos Alcaraz Garfia was born on Mar 5, 2003. His parents are Carlos Alcaraz González and Virginia Garfia Escandón. His father González is the tennis director at the Real Sociedad Club de Campo de Murcia where Carlos Alcaraz started playing tennis at the age of 4. His dad played a key role in Alcaraz’s tennis career, especially in his younger days.

He has three siblings – Alvaro, Sergio, and Jamie. Alvaro, the oldest of the siblings, is an actor. Jamie Alcaraz Garfia is a promising junior tennis player.

At age 15, he started training at the  Equelite JC Ferrero Sports Academy run by former world number 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero. 

As a junior, Alcaraz reached a peak ranking of world number 22 and won two titles on the ITF junior circuit.

Idols

His idol is countryman Rafael Nadal, who Alcaraz is often compared to. Though Alcaraz has dismissed the comparisons, their common Spanish heritage and style of play invoke comparisons between the two.

Hobbies

He likes listening to reggaeton music. He is a fan of the soccer team Real Madrid. He loves watching golf and football. He is a fan of the movie Will Smith.

Accomplishments

• Alcaraz won his first title at the 2021 Croatia Open becoming the youngest ATP champion since 2008.
• In 2022, he won the US Open title and became the youngest-ever world number 1 and the youngest-ever year-end world number 1.
• In 2023, he won the Indian Wells Masters title

Playing Style

Alcaraz is known for his aggressive style of tennis. He hits many winners on his forehand side. His game is suitable for all surfaces. A key hallmark of his game is the disguised drop shot, which combined with his heavy baseline game throws opponents off.

Alcaraz is known for his great athleticism on this court. He often chases down balls that many top players won’t be able to get to. He has great footwork and can hit inside-out forehands to take control of points.

Saudi Arabia is set to host the Next Gen ATP finals. The country which has shown interest in several sports events despite having no competitive players or teams, will host the event in the city of Jeddah. The tournament is currently held in Milan, Italy.

Next Gen ATP finals is an annual tennis tournament for top-ranked players who are under 21. The tournament does not count as an official ATP tournament but offers large prize money. The tournament incorporated experimental features in tennis before they are introduced in the ATP tour such as electronic line calling.

Currently, Saudi Arabia has an exhibition tournament, the Diriyah Cup, which pays players well despite being an exhibition tournament.

Saudi Arabia is looking at a five-year contract for the tournament. The country is also looking at hosting a women’s tournament in the country.

ATP is expected to face criticism as Saudi Arabia has poor human rights records. Top players such as Andy Murray have refused to play in Saudi Arabia because of its human rights policies.