Not net-shy: At Queen’s Club, Alcaraz showcased qualities that carry success on grass, together with a way of assurance when volleying. | Photo credit score: Getty Images
Honing his craft: Aware of how necessary it’s to maneuver effectively on grass, the Spaniard has labored tirelessly to adapt his footwork to the floor. | Photo credit score: Getty Images
Clay-court specialists of a sure classic had a pet phrase for the interval between Roland Garros and Wimbledon, once they had been leaving their beloved dust and looking for their ft on the plush lawns.
“Grass is for cows,” they might say, repeating an expression reportedly coined by Spain’s Manuel Santana, who satirically gained the Wimbledon males’s singles title in 1966.
It was a line many Spanish gamers turned to within the Eighties and 90s — and regardless of Conchita Martinez’s triumph within the girls’s singles in 1994, it wasn’t till Rafael Nadal mastered Wimbledon’s Centre Court in 2008 and 2010 that Spanish gamers started to take a look at taking part in on grass as a chance and never an obligation.
Garbine Muguruza’s success in 2017 furthered this perception, and so the concept of a Spanish high seed at Wimbledon is not unimaginable. Especially after Wimbledon moved from its grass-weighted seeding formulation to a system based mostly solely on the rankings.
Carlos Alcaraz, the lads’s No. 1 seed at subsequent week’s Championships, isn’t a clay-court specialist by any means, however he’s nonetheless discovering his sport on grass.
Before final week’s Queen’s Club Championships, the 20-year-old had performed simply six matches on the floor — all of them on the All England Club throughout two Wimbledon appearances.
Difficult begin
Alcaraz’s first grass-court match exterior Wimbledon proved difficult. He needed to battle again from a set all the way down to beat Arthur Rinderknech, a 6’5” Frenchman ranked within the mid-80s.
In his first look since shedding to Novak Djokovic within the French Open semifinals, Alcaraz confronted difficulties in coping with Rinderknech’s huge serve and internet protection. “I wasn’t able to practise too much at home as we have no grass courts,” he stated. “It’s tough playing here but I enjoy playing on grass. I would say I’m going to be better in the next round.”
Alcaraz lived as much as his phrase, rising in confidence on the floor and profitable the following 4 matches with out dropping a set to safe the celebrated Queen’s Club title. “It means a lot to have my name on the trophy,” he stated. “It was special to play here where so many legends have won. To see my name surrounded by the great champions is amazing.”
Alcaraz will now hope to emulate the lads who tasted Wimbledon success after being topped the King of Queen’s. Over the final 40 years, this checklist contains Andy Murray (2013, 2016), Nadal (2008), Lleyton Hewitt (2002), Pete Sampras (1995, 1999), Boris Becker (1985) and John McEnroe (1984).
“I have quite a lot of confidence heading into Wimbledon,” stated Alcaraz. “I ended the week playing at a high level, so right now I feel [like] one of the favourites to win Wimbledon. I mean, Novak [Djokovic] is the main favourite. That’s obvious. But I will try to play at this level, to have chances to beat him or make the final.”
Djokovic, who selected to not play a grass warm-up occasion, has reigned supreme in SW19 in every of the previous 4 editions — 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022; the match was cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. He has gained seven Wimbledon titles in all.
Alcaraz is aware of he must enhance additional on grass to oust Djokovic from his throne. The Serb’s 86 wins at Wimbledon are greater than the remainder of the highest 20 mixed. It’s a element the World No. 1 is conscious of. “I saw a statistic that Novak has won more matches in Wimbledon than the other top 20 players [put together],” Alcaraz stated. “What can I say about that, you know?”
Centre Court supremacy
Indeed, Djokovic has not misplaced on Centre Court in 10 years. Given that Alcaraz and Djokovic are the highest two seeds, they will meet solely within the championship match on July 16. And Alcaraz is hoping to have the gang on his facet ought to the 2 maintain their date. “I also saw that Djokovic has never lost a match on Centre Court since 2013 when he lost against Andy [Murray], it’s crazy. But I hope to have the crowd behind me to change that stat.”
But whereas Alcaraz is being seen as the one official menace to Djokovic at Wimbledon, it’s removed from sure that the 20-year-old may have a deep run. He made the final 16 in 2022, crushed by Jannik Sinner. Playing as a wildcard in 2021, he misplaced within the second spherical to Daniil Medvedev.
Alcaraz has improved since then, however has his grass-court sport superior sufficiently to cope with the threats that lurk on the slippery, naturally sporting floor?
The indicators from Queen’s had been encouraging. Even 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal took some time to adapt to grass, however the pace at which Alcaraz checked out ease was astonishing. He confronted difficult opposition: 2014 Queen’s winner Grigor Dimitrov within the quarters, the 6’5” Sebastian Korda within the semis and Alex de Minaur, one of many craftiest garden gamers round, within the closing.
Alcaraz showcased qualities that carry success on grass — notably a powerful sliced backhand when required and confidence across the internet. His forehand was typically devastating, often clocking 90mph and drawing gasps from the gang. While his second serve provided the opponent a gap — he misplaced 50% of such factors — he did sufficient together with his first serve (66% accuracy, 76% factors gained) on a floor weighted within the server’s favour.
Emphasis on motion
Most important of all was his emphasis on motion — it’s accepted tennis knowledge that each aspect of play on grass, with its decrease, much less predictable bounce, flows from footwork.
“Moving, for me, is the key to everything on grass,” Alcaraz stated. “I am comfortable going to the net and playing aggressively. For me it is similar to other surfaces with my style. But the movement is totally different, more tiring, more difficult, so you have to be really specific.”
The Spaniard is finding out one of the best to know their footwork. “I like to put on videos of Federer, of Murray, who move best on grass,” he stated. “I try to imitate them a bit. I’m not talking about Djokovic because he slides like [on a] clay court. [That is] not my case, but I try to put similar stuff in my game that Roger and Andy do in the grass.”
Alcaraz is clearly a quick learner. At Queen’s, he joked that he felt like a grass-court veteran. “Right now I feel like I’m playing for 10 years on grass, it’s something crazy for me,” he stated. “I didn’t expect to adapt my movement, my game so fast on grass.”
But he additionally is aware of that he wants extra expertise to completely realise his potential on the floor. Irrespective of what he does at this yr’s Wimbledon, it’s clear that he has the angle to succeed on grass. This, allied together with his age and simple expertise, provides Alcaraz all the pieces he must crack the Wimbledon code over the following decade.