Australian Open“>Carlos Alcaraz, as in the last edition of Roland Garros, wears a sleeveless shirt in the current edition of the Australian Open and that makes even more evident the physical change that he is undergoing coinciding with his coming of age.
The multinational Nike chose him and Frances Tiafoe to show off biceps at the French Internationals. This time it is the promise of the ‘Armada’ who champions that daring collection of the cane brand.
In Melbourne he is accompanied by his coachr Juan Carlos Ferrero, the physical therapist, Sergio Hernández, and his agent at IMG, Albert Molina.
From a distance, he follows his matches and his physical trainer’s evolution over the last four seasons at the Equelite Academy in Villena, which he directs. Antonio Martinez Cascales.
Alberto Lledo reviews for MARCA the training sessions that have led Carlos to become a force of nature.
Capable of connecting rights at 147 km/h and an average of firsts at 217 km/h, the Murcian follows a strict diet and is a true professional in a world like tennis where everyone is.
“In his corpulence there is part of genetics, but 80 percent is work. The mental change that he has made and that is reflected in his matches also adds up. He has made a great transformation not only in tennis but in many facets of his life “, details Lledó.
The trainer refers, among other things, to food, habits and supplementation. Carlos goes to fish and sushi before each of his matches: “When we started working with him, Juanjo Moreno (physiotherapist) and I, we had a problem and it was that he had a very low percentage of fat. In the end with the supplementation and changing habits we have achieved the goal”.
Before packing his bags in the direction of the antipodes on January 8, of the 75 kilos that Alcaraz weighs, “some sixty-odd were of muscular mass.”
Of the 75 kilos he weighs, about sixty-odd are of muscle mass
The tennis player from El Palmar has placed special emphasis in the five weeks of preseason on working on strength: “That does not mean iron and weights. We will have only done four or five loads,” continues Lledó.
In this type of training, machines such as the eccentric conical pulley appear: “It is the best for gaining muscle mass, but without losing the speed that the sport requires.”
Growing period
Regarding the impressive images that stand out in Melbourne with his huge arms, and which differ from the young man who participated in the Mutua Madrid Open in May, his coach states that “I don’t think he has gained much muscle in the last month, which What happens is that the kid is growing and not only at a muscular level but also at a bone level. He will have even gained a few millimeters in height. This process will continue until he is 21 years old”.
Alberto remembers that his pupil already started his particular preseason being confined after testing positive for coronavirus in the Davis Cup. “When he had to lock himself up, we already gave him some eccentric work guidelines to slow down the movements. The muscles break when they stretch and try to contract very quickly. In tennis when you throw the ball high for the serve and you want to close the movement It’s when you break your abdomen. We had to prepare him for the explosiveness that comes with tennis.”
400 meter heats
The tennis player has alternated sessions on the court and in the gym with series of 400 metres. “There was a second phase of strength, speed and resistance and a third of reaction and mobility work,” says his physical trainer in Villena.
Carlos travels with a cheat sheet where he has written down and summarized everything he has to do on the trips. They have a basic action plan, but with the player and his coach Ferrero they are permanently connected to the Equelite Academy for whatever they may need.
The team of the Murcian phenomenon hopes to have time to recharge the batteries of his body at the conclusion of Roland Garros. Until then, the calendar is full of commitments for someone who aspires to finish in the ‘top15’ and even qualify for the Turin Masters Cup.
After Australia will be in Rio de Janeiro, Acapulco, Indian Wells and Miami, before facing the European tour of brick dust. Without forgetting the illusion that makes him possible debut defending Spain in the qualifying round of the Davis Cup against Romania at the Puente Romano Tennis Club in Marbella.
A wide structure
Alcaraz, who will face Matteo Berrettini this Friday, for a place in the round of 16 of the Australian Open, has a large payroll at his service: a former number one like Ferrero leading the baton, the physiotherapists Juanjo Moreno, Sergio Hernández and Fran Rubio ; the doctor Juanjo López, the physical trainers Álex Sánchez and Alberto Lledó and the psychologist Isabel Balaguer.
