Player profile:
Player profile:From: Murcia, Spain
Age: 20
Current world ranking: 2
Titles: 12
Grand Slams:
Favourite surface: clay
Favourite shot: forehand
Favourite tournament: Roland Garros
Tennis idol: Rafael Nadal
Early Life
Picking up a tennis racket at the age of four with the help and guidance of his father at the Real Sociedad Club de Murcia (where he was the tennis academy director), Carlos soon fell in love with the sport. Growing up competing in local, national and international tournaments on the junior circuit before entering the senior competitions, the athlete turned professional in 2018, but it wasn’t until 2020 when the Spaniard made his ATP debut at the Rio Open.
He has quickly become known to be one of the most exciting players in men’s tennis, and he’s not yet at his peak. Regarded as a dynamic, creative force, Alcaraz plays to his strengths of speed and aggression to produce mind-blowing shots against some of the world’s most powerful and dominant players. His gentle forehand dropshots make it hard for opponents to predict and comeback from, while his ability to position himself at the net and defend is a favourite move. Remaining humble and kind, Carlos demonstrates exceptional professionalism and sportsmanship time after time, despite his sharp rise to fame and success, keeping his opponents as genuinely close friends on the tour.
In 2021, he gained his first title at the Croatian Open, defeating Richard Gasquet, and has since added two Grand Slam titles to his name – the 2022 US Open and the 2023 Wimbledon title. 2022 also served Alcaraz titles in Madrid, Barcelona, Miami and Rio. 2023 brought continued success at the Indian Wells, Barcelona and Madrid Opens and not to mention the title for the 2023 cinch Championships, just weeks before one of the greatest Grand Slam tournaments of all – The Championships, Wimbledon, where he shocked the world dethroning an all-time great.
Facts about Alcaraz
He became the youngest and first teenage World No.1 at age 19, making a record rise from World No.32 at the end of 2021 to No.1 in September 2022.
He is the youngest player to defeat both Nadal and Djokovic (defeating them on back-to-back days in the same clay-court event).
Alcaraz became professionally agented at 12-years-old.
He is the first to come in between the continued cycle of Wimbledon winners including Federer, Djokovic, Nadal and Murray since 2002, and at just 20, is one of Wimbledon’s youngest ever male champions.
Alcaraz isn’t his last name – born Carlos Alcaraz Garfia, he is professionally known as Carlos Alcaraz.
He is the fourth Spanish male to reach the No.1 spot in the ATP rankings (others include Rafael Nadal, Carlos Moya and his own mentor, Juan Carlos Ferrero).
2023 cinch Championships - Winner
2023 cinch Championships - WinnerMaking his cinch Championships debut, Alcaraz had a weaker start to the tournament but soon grew his confidence and began moving more competently on the grass, as it was only his third tournament on this surface.
Winning his first grass-court title after defeating Australian No.2 Alex De Minaur, Carlos was confident in claiming the Wimbledon title just a matter of weeks after and making his dream of winning there a reality…
2023 The Championships, Wimbledon - Winner
Alcaraz thinks that Wimbledon is the “most beautiful on the tour” and it has always been a dream of his to win the tournament, regarded by so many professional tennis players to be one of the greatest titles to claim, and who can argue otherwise!
The Spaniard defeated one of the all-time tennis greats – Novak Djokovic – in an epic five-set final at the All England Lawn Tennis Club lasting just shy of five dramatic, enthralling hours. Djokovic’s winning run at Wimbledon and 34 consecutive match wins were finally ended by the 20-year-old, boldly making his mark on world tennis, showing everyone just how much of a strong and promising player he is. Performing against an athlete like Novak on the world stage for one of the greatest Grand Slam titles is no walk in the park, and to perform like that on a grass-court surface (by no means his strongest surface) is quite the achievement, particularly at his age. Carlos is the first player to win the Wimbledon men’s singles title since 2002 outside of the ‘big four’ – Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray, which demonstrates the significance of this win and his deserved popularity.
All we can say is watch out for this brilliant disruptor, who will bring a deafening roar of cheer from the crowds in tournaments to come. He’s likely to be around for a while if his performance is anything to go by, and we can’t wait to see what other titles he can add to his list in 2024.
We’re hoping Carlos will be fighting fit throughout the 2024 grass-court season so we can catch him again at the 2024 cinch Championships, and of course The Championships, Wimbledon where he will be working to retain both his championship titles. Discover our hospitality experiences to watch Alcaraz in style, complimented with exceptional food, refreshing cocktails and wonderfully relaxing spaces…
