Carlos Alcaraz made a huge leap in quality in 2022, having won a Grand Slam and two Masters 1000. The 19-year-old Spaniard won the US Open at the end of a breathtaking ride, in which he showed all his fighting skills. Thanks to his triumph in New York, ‘Carlitos’ became the youngest number 1 in the history of men’s tennis.
As if that weren’t enough, the Murciano also won two Masters 1000 (Miami and Madrid) and two ATP 500 (Rio and Barcelona). Juan Carlos Ferrero’s protégé took it upon himself to beat Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic during the Mutua Madrid Open, to then annihilate Alexander Zverev in the final.
The Iberian’s performance dropped slightly in the last part of the season, also due to some physical problems. A tear in Bercy’s abs forced him to miss the ATP Finals in Turin and the Davis Cup finals in Malaga. Alcaraz has used these weeks to heal and has already resumed training.
Update on Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz will look forward to the tremendous challenge that lies ahead in 2023, where he will try to continue progressing as a player and defend his world number 1 title. For this, the Murcian has already established what his schedule will be in the first quarter of competition.
It must be remembered that the Murcian’s preseason will consist of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship exhibition, from December 16 to 18, as well as the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament, from January 10 to 12.
He will arrive at the 2023 Australian Open without having played any previous official tournament, as he did last year. Subsequently, he will try to defend his crown at the ATP 500 Rio de Janeiro 2023, from February 20 to 26 and on clay, before embarking on a grueling American tour on hard courts, which will start with the ATP 500 Acapulco 2023, on February 27 to March 5, moving then to the dispute of the Masters 1000 of Indian Wells and Miami.
Former Spanish tennis professional Emilio Benfele Álvarez believes that Felix Auger-Aliassime doesn’t have the same drive as Carlos Alcaraz to become World No. 1. “They play very well, but we have had the Big 3, who for me are still aliens, and I don’t think they will reach that level of tennis.
The speed of the game is increasing, which will reach a limit, but getting three players who have taken the level to another type of tennis that had not been seen before, I don’t think it can happen. The three have been pushing up and winning over everyone, except among themselves,” said Benfele Álvarez.
