Rafa Nadal regen Carlos Alcaraz has no ‘weaknesses’ and can win ‘double digit’ Grand Slams - Chris Evert
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ByEurosport
Updated 05/04/2022 at 11:18 GMT
Carlos Alcaraz could win at least 10 Grand Slams, according to 18-time Grand Slam winner Chris Evert. The 18-year-old Spaniard won his first Masters title with a victory against Casper Ruud at the Miami Open over the weekend. Alcaraz has targeted winning a Grand Slam next, and Evert is backing him to do so. Alcaraz is among the favourites for the upcoming French Open at Roland Garros.
‘I am not afraid to say I want to win a Grand Slam’ – Alcaraz after claiming Miami Open
Rafael Nadal sees a lot of his own traits in teenage phenom Carlos Alcaraz, says Chris Evert, who also claims that the 18-year-old Spaniard could win “double digit” Grand Slams.
Alcaraz beat world No. 7 Casper Ruud in straight sets on Sunday to win his first Masters title with success at the Miami Open. It was the latest milestone in what has been a meteoric rise for the 18-year-old. He was ranked 141st in the ATP rankings at the start of last season, but is now closing in on the top 10.
The win in Miami followed on from an impressive showing at Indian Wells, where he fell to 21-time Grand Slam winner Nadal at the semi-final stage. The 35-year-old was so impressed with Alcaraz that he called him “unstoppable” after the match. And Evert says Nadal sees a lot of himself in Alcaraz.
"When Alcaraz lost to Nadal in Indian Wells, Nadal was talking about him and he said he's humble, passionate and strong. After he said all these superlatives, I just said to myself: ‘wait, he's talking about himself,’” began Evert.
“And, sure enough, that's why he's the heir apparent to Nadal because he's got all those intangible qualities that are so appealing. Like being humble and being passionate, along with the physical tools, his movement and the fact that he has no weaknesses.
“He's got the whole package and I know I'm just sounding like everyone else when I say he's going to win multiple Grand Slams, but he could be in the double digits in Grand Slams and become No. 1. There's just nothing preventing him in my eyes.”
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Alcaraz beats Ruud to win first ever Masters title at Miami Open
Evert added that Alcaraz's power alongside the finesses of his game sets him out as a player capable of challenging at the very top of the sport.
“It's just interesting with how physical tennis is now - especially in the men's game that a teenager - I mean, would we ever expect to see an 18-year-old with the physicality and the tools this advanced in the men's game?” she added.
“You could see [it] in the women's game because we've seen it historically, we've seen 15- and 16-year-olds beat top players in the women's game, but we've really never seen a teenager… well we haven't seen it in a long time. So that's what's very, very impressive.”
The defeat to Nadal in California was one of only two losses this season, with the other coming at the hands of Matteo Berrettini in the round of 32 at the Australian Open. And Evert is backing the 18-year-old to fulfil his own expectations to win a Grand Slam sooner rather than later.
“I think having that inner confidence and inner belief in yourself is the quality of a champion and it's nothing but a good thing; because if he didn't have that, he might have doubts in his mind that would prevent him from winning a Grand Slam,” 18-time major winner Evert added.
“All the great champions that had longevity - like [Roger] Federer, [Rafael] Nadal, Martina Navratilova, and Steffi Graf - have that belief and I think it's innate and I would not expect anything less. I think that's one of the intangibles of a champion. We all see the tangible things like the power and the control and the stroke production.
"The intangibles are harder to see, when you're watching a player. You don't know what they're thinking, or what they're feeling, but that is 50% of the whole package: the belief that they have and how they problem solve, and that's all as important as the toolbox that you have as a player.”
Evert says Alcaraz – who holds an 18-2 win-loss record this season ahead of the clay swing – has sent a message to his peers with statements of intent on and off the court:
“And by believing in himself and saying it outright, he has sent out a message to other players: ‘I feel like I belong here and I'm going to achieve many things and you're not going to stop me.’"
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