Roland Garros 2022

The Breaking Bull: Spain is getting ready for its next tennis star

He is only 19 years old, already in the top ten in the world, champion of the Madrid tournament and is defined as a natural phenomenon, but this year is not 2005, and he is not called Rafael Nadal.

Is Carlos Alcras on his way to becoming the next dominant Spaniard in tennis?

Uri Barnea

20/05/2022

Friday, May 20, 2022, 6 p.m.

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Summary: Carlos Alkras defeats Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Madrid Tournament (Sport 1)

Not sure Carlos Alcras could have imagined on his 17th birthday where he would be exactly two years later.

If then he was just a boy who started the so complex transition from the youth round to the senior round, deep in the fourth century in nature in the ATP rankings, today he is already one of the main candidates to win the French Open.

Like most of his Spanish counterparts in the industry, Alcras' beginnings began with excellence on clay and buds of immense talent were discovered even before his 18th birthday, when he won tournaments in the Challenger round.

The young tennis player entered the radar of many in early 2021 with his debut at the level of the Grand Slam tournaments, which was also immediately charged with a victory in the first round.

The star's results attracted a lot of attention and with her comparisons to the great Spanish tennis players of today, Rafael Nadal, until a few months into the 2021 season the direct encounter between them came true.

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Summary of the quarterfinals of the Madrid tournament: Carlos Alcras against Rafael Nadal (Sport1)

There was no better location than the Spanish capital, Madrid, to host the confrontation between the young lion and the older lion.

There are not enough words that can express the symbiotic connection between Nadal and the clay.

With an endless list of titles, facing the bull from Mallorca on the red surface is one of the biggest challenges the tennis industry can offer.

Unsurprisingly, at the time, Nadal's hand was on top.

At the same time, Alcaraz's fierce fighting and the excellent foundations he held at such a young age only sharpened the comparisons among professionals and tennis fans.

With that wind in his back, Alcaraz won his first ATP title as the rest of the 2021 season is accompanied by a streak of great milestones such as the heroic victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas in five tense sets at the United States Open.

The meteoric progress graph also continued into the 2022 season, when he added to the trophy cabinet the title in Rio, advancing to the semifinals in the Indian Wells, where he was stopped only by Nadal, and a historic win in the Miami Masters Tournament after no less than three wins over the Top 10 players.

Loaded with confidence.

Carlos Alcras (Photo: Reuters)

Now, laden with confidence, rich in receipts for his immense talent, the stage in Madrid was ready for Alcras' third take against Nadal.

Just a week before, and even before he celebrated his 19th birthday, Alcras entered the top 10 gates after winning the Barcelona tournament.

The timing of this achievement came with a host of historical similarities.

17 years earlier, it was Rafael Nadal himself, who first qualified for the top ten tennis players in the world after a degree on Barcelona soil.

What's more - Nadal then defeated Alcras' current coach and no less Spanish sergeant - Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Newspaper headlines marketed the meeting in all its grandeur, media people carefully analyzed the duo's expected tactics for the quarter-final game and tennis fans from all over the world bit their nails.

The high expectations did not disappoint: with fine tennis and despite an ankle injury sustained during the game, the student surpassed his rabbi.

Fate wanted and the lottery summoned an equally tough confrontation in the semi-finals: Novak Djokovic.

Even after losing the first set, the young Spaniard did not say desperate and turned the bowl into another sensational victory, including becoming the first tennis player ever to win that duo in the same clay tournament.

A drop in tension in the final?

no and no.

The match against Alexander Zebrav, the third ranked player in the tournament, was signed in just about an hour with an overwhelming victory for Alkras.

For the first time since David Nevlandian did so in 2007, an immigrant tennis player, who is only 19 years old, wins the top three rankings in the same tournament.

The guy knows what he's doing.

Alkras celebrates after victory over Zebrav (Photo: GettyImages, Clive Brunskill)

Such a wholesale list of achievements at a young age brings with it a mountain of expectations, including already for the upcoming championship.

After lifting the trophy in Madrid, Alcras said he feels ready to win the Grand Slam.

While some may see this as a premature statement, the fact that he chose to rest in the week before the tournament opened and his natural fondness for clay gives him credit points.

To this must be added the bothersome injury to the foot of Nadal, the natural candidate to win every clay tournament, and the fact that he defeated Djokovic only recently.

On the other hand, some claim that the Serb has been showing excellent fitness in recent weeks and that since the race for the Grand Slam winners' record table has not yet ended, he will arrive in Paris more determined than ever.

If history does repeat itself, perhaps the following figure can be found: Just as Alcras and Vandal also qualified for the top 10 in the same arena and at the same age, would winning Nadal's first degree in Paris at 19 be the metric hint of a similar Alcras win?

time will tell.

Alcras arrives in France with no small pressure on his shoulders, and even if this is the first time he has come a major candidate to win a major title, one can be sure that this is not the last time.

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