“I saw rock and roll future and its name is Bruce Springsteen.”
Music critic Jon Landau wrote these famous words in 1974, after first watching a then little-known, wispy-bearded 25-year-old perform in a small theatre near Harvard University.
Over these few months, we have seen tennis future. And its name is Carlos Alcaraz.
Last week, the toothy-grinned Alcaraz, who turned 19 on May 5, and whose face still bears some sausage pink acne, provided the biggest evidence of his ability and his mental granite. The Spaniard defeated legendary countryman Rafael Nadal and then Novak Djokovic on the way to winning the Madrid Masters, his second Masters 1000 category title after the Miami Open a few weeks ago.
Beating the two titans – Nadal and Djokovic – is the hardest job in tennis mentally and physically. To do it in the same tournament is even tougher. To do it on clay is next to impossible.
But Alcaraz did it. And he played them on successive days.
After a 137-minute battle of grit and legs against Nadal, considered the greatest athlete in Spanish history, Alcaraz outlasted Djokovic in three hours, 35 minutes. That’s nearly six hours of court time in just over 24 hours.
There hasn’t been a teenager this good, and of as fearless a mind, in men’s tennis since Nadal swaggered on to the scene in the mid-2000s, bulging biceps, Capri pants and all.
Alcaraz’s tennis journey started at age four in El Palmar, under the guidance of his tennis player father, Carlos Sr. He grew up with three siblings in Spain’s Murcia region, which earned a tribute after Alcaraz won the Madrid final against Alexander Zverev.
As is tradition after matches, he was asked to scribble something on the camera. In blue ink, Alcaraz wrote “Vive le Palmar, Vive le Murcia.”
And then, under eyebrows thick as mink fur, his eyes twinkled and his thick lips broke into a boyish grin as he raised his long arms and soaked in the applause from the full house at Caja Magica.
Among the spectators, a quartet of fans stood alongside, wearing t-shirts that formed the name ‘Nadalcaraz’. It was a reminder that Spain now has become an even bigger tennis superpower. In the stands, wherever you looked, were former French Open winners from Spain. (Wake up, All India Tennis Association).
In terms of shots, Alcaraz is not a boring power machine who thrashes away from the baseline. Yes, heavy groundstrokes are the foundation of his arsenal. But he also has Roger Federer like flair. Alcaraz’s most unlikely weapon is the drop shot. Against Djokovic, he had 51 outright winners, many of them drop shots. The Serb, on the other hand, had 24 winners.
Against Nadal, in the first set, Alcaraz had 19 winners compared to just two from the other side.
These numbers, and the drop shots, highlight Alcaraz’s willingness to take risks rather than wait for his opponent to make a mistake. As he said after beating Nadal, “In a tough moment, I think I have to go for it. If I miss it, [it’s fine if] I lose it, I feel that I am doing the right things, I am happy with that [approach]. If I am happy with that if I miss it (sic), but today I did it and it was unbelievable.”
In Spain’s extraordinary tennis structure, word of talent gets around. The abundance of former champions in the country are willing to play with promising youngsters. David Ferrer, former French Open finalist, had practised with Alcaraz some years ago. He could see he was special. Not only because Alcaraz could hit good shots, but also because he had the mentality of a champion, and the elusive Nadal mix of competitiveness and modesty.
“It was surprising to see his (Alcaraz’s) ball speed, but above all that I couldn’t hurt him with my flat ball,” Ferrer told ATP Insider. “He used his hands very well and I could see that he was very fast. For that age he had very good footwork and it was very difficult to hit a winner against him.
“I’ve trained with a lot of young boys. But when a 14-year-old copes with your tempo like that and you can see his desire to beat you in a tie-break – while always being respectful – it’s because he has something special. I see similar things [as Nadal] in terms of the premature capacity to learn and the ambition.”
The next task for Alcaraz is to sustain his level, now that the pressure of expectations on him has risen. The other challenge is to prove himself in the best of five sets format of the Grand Slams. At the US Open last year, he showed he could do it to an extent. Alcaraz defeated the more experienced Stefanos Tsitsipas in five sets. His next round, against Peter Gojowczyk, was a five setter too. Alcaraz won it, but then retired hurt midway through the quarterfinals.
To win a major, Alcaraz will need to learn to manage body and mind through seven tough matches. It takes players a few years to find that sweet spot. But for now, Alcaraz is on the right path. There is hardly anything he is doing wrong, except, perhaps, with his Nadal-like way of saying, ‘Aanbeliebable’.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
