Alcaraz lives up to hype with Madrid win
When Carlos Alcaraz played in his first Madrid Open as an 18-year-old, his goal was to gain experience and learn from the top players.
Only a year later, Alcaraz already feels like he belongs among the best.
The Spanish teenage sensation capped another impressive week with a straight-sets victory over Alexander Zverev yesterday to win the Madrid Open and become the second-youngest player to win two Masters 1000 titles.
His comfortable 6-3, 6-1 win over Zverev followed victories over his idol Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals and top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals.
“Last year I was going through these experiences for the first time, playing against the best players, playing in the Masters 1000, and I learned a lot,” Alcaraz said. “Now it’s different. I go onto the court knowing that I can win.”
Alcaraz became the youngest winner in Madrid, and the second youngest to win two Masters 1000 trophies after Nadal won in Monte Carlo and Rome in 2005 as an 18-yearold. Alcaraz had already become the youngest to enter the top 10 since Nadal did it in 2005.
“It feels great to be able to beat these players,” the 19-year-old Alcaraz said. “To beat two of the best players in history and then Zverev, the world No 3. He is a great player. I would say this is the best week of my life.”
It was the seventh straight win over a top-10 player for Alcaraz, and his tour-leading fourth title of the year. He also has the most wins this season with 28, one more than Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Alcaraz tried to downplay the hype about whether he is the best player right now, though.
“Djokovic is the No 1 in the ranking,” he said. “It’s not because I won in Barcelona and beat Djokovic and Rafa in Madrid that I will consider myself the best player in the world. Also, I think I’m going to be No 6 tomorrow, so I still have five players in front of me to be the best one.”