Carlos Alcaraz makes provide to Rafael Nadal as Wimbledon hero shares new ‘dream’
Carlos Alcaraz has admitted that he would like to workforce up with Rafael Nadal to symbolize Spain within the males’s doubles occasion at subsequent yr’s Olympic Games. The 20-year-old wrapped up his first Wimbledon title on Sunday with a historic victory over Novak Djokovic to rubber-stamp his standing as one of many world’s main gamers.
Alcaraz is seen by many because the pure inheritor to Nadal, who has been the satisfaction of Spain during the last 20 years however appears set to go the torch on to his youthful compatriot when he ultimately retires from the game. Nadal not too long ago steered that he’ll step again from tennis earlier than the beginning of 2025, which means that subsequent yr’s Olympics might be amongst his remaining match appearances.
It appears as if Alcaraz is raring to play doubles with Nadal whereas he nonetheless has the possibility, with the two-time Grand Slam winner revealing to El Partidazo de Cope that he could be keen on partnering his idol in Paris subsequent yr. The tennis occasions will likely be staged at Roland Garros, the place Nadal has loved lots of the finest moments of his profession on the French Open.
“It would be a dream to live the experience of playing doubles with your idol,” insisted Alcaraz, who expressed an identical view earlier this yr when he mentioned: “Let’s see how he’s doing and how he’s going, you know, in this year. Hopefully, he’s going great but for me, it could be a dream to play doubles with him.”
Alcaraz has by no means teamed up with Nadal to play doubles however the pair have confronted one another in singles on three events, with the latter profitable twice. They are seemingly on good phrases away from the court docket, with Alcaraz revealing after his Wimbledon triumph on Sunday that Nadal had been in contact to want him good luck within the remaining towards Djokovic.
He defined: “He [Nadal] sent me a message. First he sent it to wish me luck for the final and I appreciate it. That someone like him, an idol of my childhood and who continues to be so, sends you strength and luck for the most important moment of your life is something to admire.”
Nadal has additionally waxed lyrical about Alcaraz when quizzed on what makes the newly-crowned Wimbledon champion so particular, telling Marca in December: “When I say that he is special, I mean that he is very fast, that he hits very hard, that he has a great drive and a great backhand and that he has the ability to be a great tennis player.
“If we will analyse it this manner, as a result of Carlos could be very particular and he’s a participant who I feel will mark an period. I additionally say with whole humility, and this should not be overlooked, that when [Alexander] Zverev, [Daniil] Medvedev or [Stefanos] Tsitsipas arrived, [Roger] Federer, [Novak] Djokovic and I had been nonetheless at a really excessive stage.
“We athletes also feed ourselves victories and for many years our rivals have been able to win very little and when you win, you improve. So these new generations have more options than other rivals had at the time because now, beyond Roger’s retirement, Novak and I are playing fewer and fewer tournaments.”