Carlos Alcaraz’s rivals are already aware that he is “stopping” them from progressing to the next level at the biggest tournaments. Taylor Fritz admitted that some of the younger players waited years for the likes of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to move out of the way just for the 20-year-old to become a force at Grand Slams.
Alcaraz has cemented himself as one of the best players in the world in a short space of time. Aged just 20, he already has two Grand Slam titles to his name and became the youngest world No 1 in ATP history last year.
But the Spaniard’s sudden rise has been difficult for some of his peers, who thought that they would be home free when the Big Three eventually retired. As well as players like Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas – who were originally touted as the next big things in tennis – Taylor Fritz has been making big strides but now sees Alcaraz as a new roadblock just like Nadal and Federer were.
The world No 9 defeated Nadal to win Indian Wells last year, ending the 37-year-old’s 20-match winning streak at the time – a victory that was significant given that Fritz knew it would always be tough against the Big Four. “That day is my best tennis memory. And, I mean, it might always be,” the American told Esquire.
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“I always thought, When you run into Nadal, or Federer, Djokovic, or [Andy] Murray, you’re in trouble. We’ve just been waiting for them to move out of the way.” With Federer now retired, Nadal seemingly halfway there and Murray no longer at the top of the sport, Fritz said Alcaraz had become the player stopping everyone else from progressing at the Majors.
He continued: “Now, we have this next wave coming in, and it’s motivating. But, there’s Alcaraz. I think Alcaraz is going to be the main person that’s stopping us from winning Slams.”
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So far, Alcaraz has already proven Fritz right. The Spaniard currently has a better record at the Majors than every player born in the 1990s, as Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev are the only players born in the decade to win one Grand Slam title each.
Djokovic has so far been the only man to stop Alcaraz at Grand Slam level this year, as the Spaniard lost their semi-final encounter at the French Open when he started suffering with cramps. The world No 1 missed the Australian Open through injury and he won Wimbledon last month, beating the Serb in a thrilling five-set final.
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