Carlos Alcaraz He is about to close a 2024 of many emotions for him. He has two appointments left: Nitto ATP Finalswhere the eight best of the course play; and the final fireworks of the Davis Cupwith the addition that it will be the competition in which Rafa Nadal put an end to his career.
This season, Carlos has fulfilled his childhood dream of winning Roland Garros, a success that he also followed up with his second Wimbledon. In total there are four titles, less than the six in 2023 and the five in 2022, but more important because in these two years he “only” won one Grand Slam. The other two crowns in 2024 with Indian Wells and an ATP 500, Beijing. There is also, of course, the Olympic silver at the Paris Games.
The note in 2024
You can put the cherry on top if you become a “teacher”. “It is impossible to rate it with a 10, because you can always improve, but it was an incredible year,” said Alcaraz in Turin. “I would say eight and a half or nine. It could have been better with the gold medal or other tournaments, but I would say an 8.5”, it is finally put as a note.
“I learned a lot this year. I know myself more as a person and player, what I need to do, on and off the court. Some losses this year were painful. Not only an objective on the court, but also what you have to do on your days off, how many days to take before the tournaments, before starting to prepare as best as possible,” added the Murcian, who is only 21 years old and whose career has barely has started. It also ensures that you arrive with a different predisposition to this final stretch of the course. “Last year was a difficult end to the year for me,” said Alcaraz before the emblematic tournament, in which opens on Monday against Casper Ruud. “I couldn’t play at my best level. The last two games here were pretty good but the two before that, and in the previous tournaments, I didn’t play at my best level, so I realized that I had to change a little at this time of year, like I have done now. I come a little different, knowing that there are things I have to change to have a good result here and go far,” he explained.
In 2023 he played the ATP Finals for the first time. He lost in the debut against Zverev, but then he carried out the second duel against Rublev and already had a good performance against Medvedev. Djokovic defeated him in the semifinals, 6-2 and 6-3, an incontestable result, but in a more contested match than it seems. In 2022, he could not play because he had an abdominal injury.
Alcaraz’s rivals at the 2024 ATP Finals
Carlos has been included in the John Newcombe Group along with Zverev, Ruud y Rublev. The peculiar tournament of the masters is one of the few in which a defeat is fixed and does not mean elimination. The best two of the group get into the semifinals against the first two of the other, which includes Sinner, Medvedev, Fritz and De Miñaur. Alcaraz debuts on Monday against Ruud. Also playing that day are Zverev and Rublev. The second day, on Wednesday, will depend on the first: the winners measure each other, and the same happens with the losers.
