The Spanish teenage talent Carlos Alcaraz has announced his entry to the big stages in tennis after Miami Open with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Norwegian world number eight Casper Ruud in the final on Sunday. The 18-year-old claimed his career’s biggest ATP Tour title on Sunday at the Miami Open.
Alcaraz earned his first ATP Masters 1000 crown and is the first Spanish man to triumph in Miami after eight previous final appearances by his compatriots, including five by Rafa Nadal.
A glittering moment
In his post-match press conference, the 18-year-old revealed that the King of Spain phoned to congratulate him on his triumph. Alcaraz admitted that the call came as a huge surprise and that he could not contain his nervousness when speaking to the King.
“So it’s pretty amazing to get the call from the Spanish King. I was more nervous for that call than the match (smiling). But, yeah, it’s pretty amazing that the Spanish King congratulates you on the hard work that you put every day and your win. Yeah, it’s something that you never thought you were gonna receive. It’s amazing.”; He said.
Well-controlled game from the Spaniard
The Spaniard had a slow start in the final. But as the game moved on, he was able to settle well, giving him the confidence to keep the pressure on Casper Ruud. He only made fewer mistakes when he was near winning the historic title. Within one hour and 52 minutes, he made sure that the title would fly to Spain.
“I knew that Casper is playing unbelievable. He has a big forehand. I tried to play to his backhand first and attack all the time,” said Alcaraz. “I tried not to let him dominate the match. Forehand down the line, backhand down the line was a key for me.”
Only Michael Chang (Toronto 1990) And Rafael Nadal (2005 Monte Carlo) were younger than Alcaraz’s 18 years and 333 days when they won their first respective ATP Masters 1000 titles. Alcaraz replaced Novak Djokovic as the youngest Miami champion, with the Serb taking the 2007 title at the age of 19 when Alcaraz was three years old.
Learning from the best
The former world No.1 Juan Carlos Ferrero is the coach Carlos Alcaraz. Juan had made a significant impact on the teenager’s career. The Spaniard highly praised his coach during the press conference and said that he is also his good friend.
“Juan Carlos is a very important person for me. In professional side, on the personal side, you know, he helps me a lot. I mean, when we are together, we will talk about everything in life, everything in our sport, about football, as well. I mean, yeah, Juan Carlos, I consider him a coach and a friend as well,” he said.
