Davis Cup 2021: Carlos Alcaraz: “The Davis Cup is a rush”

LCarlos Alcaraz’s life has entered a whirlwind. A week ago i left Next Gen master. Now, after taking a bath with the crowds at MARCA Sport Weekend, he sails arms in Madrid to debut in the Davis Cup. The youngest since Rafa Nadal.

Are you surprised by his consistency and results since he started January locked up in a Melbourne hotel for two weeks?

I didn’t expect to finish in the top 32. I set the goal of the top 50 and I already saw it difficult to achieve. But there have been great moments, great games and great tournaments that have made me grow very fast. and make what had marked me come true.

For 2022 look at the ‘top 10’?

Being top 10 is already big words and I would say that it is very ambitious to think that. Of course it is not impossible, but I want to be humble and I think it would be good to finish in the top 15. From that ranking, climbing positions is already very difficult because all tennis players play very well.

What grade would you give your season?

It has been a spectacular season. If I have to give myself a grade, I put an eight because you can always do better.

From the outside it gives the feeling that each tournament he plays is better than the previous one in terms of level. Is it a real feeling?

Every game and every tournament has helped me to continue growing. It is important to win, but also to lose in order to learn.

Nadal’s ball rhythm surprises, it is different from seeing it from the outside

What has improved the most?

I would say that the head, the mentality, the knowing how to be, controlling the emotions, controlling myself on the track. It is essential to be one of the best in the world.

If I could change something about the course, what would it be? The last time we spoke, he referred to the fact that he had not been able to face the semi-finals in Marbella.

I know I was talking about the semi-finals in Marbella, but right now it won’t change anything. Thanks to what happened to me in Marbella I was able to face the next semifinal that I played and the final in Umag.

You are one of those who lives for and for tennis watching videos, game summaries … Are you trying to disconnect?

When I’m not training or at home, I don’t watch so many videos, but I do like to follow the results of all kinds of tournaments, be they ATP, Challenge or the women’s circuit.

On his debut in Australia he was excited to be able to see all the players and train with them. Who do you need to practice with?

Of the top I am missing Djokovic and I would love to see what he is like on the track. With Sinner I have played, I have not trained. Then there’s Hurkacz and Murray, who don’t either.

Who is the one that has impacted you the most?

When they entered with Nadal in Australia I was very surprised by his ball rhythm, the weight with which he was going. You can see it from the outside, but living it is something else. Rublev is another of those who surprised me by how he trains, at maximum intensity, he hits the ball very hard. And I pay attention to him a lot because he is similar to me, very explosive, every ball he has in training he takes it as if it were a match, he does not want to miss it.

Rafael Nadal has already been measured once at the Mutua Madrid Open, coinciding with his coming of age. Do you want to play with him again?

I know I want to play with Rafa again because I played very nervous, I couldn’t be calm on the court. But you learn from experiences and the next time you will assimilate it much better.

Nadal is Nadal and Alcaraz is Alcaraz but he is even beating some of his precocity records.

In the end the media speak and write, I read and find out about things. If I’m breaking Nadal precocity records, it means I’m doing things right. I am very pleased.

A few days ago I lost a difficult match in Pars-Bercy with Hugo Gaston. Was it your worst moment on a tennis court?

Let’s say yes. It was like an avalanche that hit me. In the end I consider myself a mature player who realizes things. Once I passed I understood that it is an experience that I had to live sooner or later and I am glad I lived it so soon because it makes you mature and learn earlier.

What was going through your head when Gaston scored 17 points in a row?

It was a mental block. He was doing well in the second set, 5-0 up. I was assimilating better what was happening, but there came a moment that blocked me. The audience crashed and I became more and more blocked, the downfall came and I did not know how to be on the track.

Did you become more aware of what was happening in the stands than of the game?

No, I was concentrating on the game, but I have ears and heard the noise from outside. Between serve and serve they come up and it affected me. It is something that I had not experienced.

In speeches and in front of journalists, he is quite comfortable with English. Are you happy with your improvement?

It is something that I have to keep improving. Now I defend myself a little bit, but in the future I want to speak perfect English. When I talk to a player I know that I get more nervous. I want to talk to anyone without getting those nerves.

In his Australian quarantine he was studying the theory of a driver’s license when he turned 18. How are you doing?

Ah it is not little. I want to get my license as soon as possible, but it is costing me a lot.

You are a football and Madrid fan. Would you like to go to the Bernabu?

I am a Madrid fan and I have not been to a Primera stadium. I would love to see my team live.

I want to play against Federer, I want to play against the three of the ‘Big Three

This season he has beaten three of the top 10 such as Stefanos Tsitsipas, Matteo Berrettini and Jannik Sinner. Does it look at your level?

I see myself at the level of being able to compete, I am not saying winning. To compete and to put it hard to a top 10 s I am capable.

Do you consider that Djokovic and Medvedev are one step above today?

It will include Tsitsipas and Zverev. They are above.

Are you satisfied with how you handle pressure?

S. I have improved mentally. It is a job that I have been doing for a long time with the psychologist Isabel Balaguer. I make video calls with her. At least once every two to three weeks. I consider the mental part to be the most important thing in tennis.

Are you ready to go out and that more and more people meet you, that they stop you for photos, autographs?

It is clear to me and if that happens it means that I am there, that I am doing things well. I am a boy who has also had idols and who has also come to say or ask for something when he has seen a famous person. It is no problem for me to be stopped and recognized.

Who have you asked for photos?

Tennis players like Rafa and Federer and many more that I don’t remember now.

When do you find that you have earned the respect of the locker room?

They have been getting to know me and I have made myself known as well. At the US Open, when he beat Tsitsipas, I noticed that he was already there with them, that he was one of them. I noticed that they had me present.

You hook a lot with the fans. Notice that the stands are usually on his side because of how he plays, how he lives the game, how he celebrates it?

When I go to tournaments I notice that the public goes with me, they get to know me more. I think I have a game that people like, it attracts them. I feel lucky. When I go out on the track I try to make the fans enjoy this sport.

Did you particularly want to face Sinner with whom you share a generation?

I know I wanted to because the two times we met to train, I won the tournament and we couldn’t.

He made it to the US Open quarters. When you returned to Spain did you see yourself in the Davis Cup team?

I see myself as the novice, due to maturity, but one thing is what I see or feel and the other is what the captain thinks.

Did Bruguera call you directly to summon him or does he speak to his coach?

I called Juan Carlos.

How do you feel when you are officially one of the members of the quintet?

It’s a rush. It’s something I’ve dreamed of since I was little, being able to represent my country, Spain, in the Davis Cup.

Have you seen any videos of Ferrero in the final of Sant Jordi in 2000?

Yes, some.

And have you talked about what it’s like to play in the Davis Cup?

He has told me anecdotes. The more stories he listened to, the more he wanted to be part of the team.

Are you ready to jump into singles?

I feel very well physically and tensically. I am very confident and I personally find myself prepared. What to play is no longer my decision.

I have also had idols and I have approached to ask for a photo or an autograph

Is Spain less favorite without Nadal?

Rafa gives a plus that few passes have, but I trust the team we have. We can do great things.

Does it motivate you to play in front of more than 9,000 people who will support you?

Yes, I am passionate about the idea of ​​having such an experience.

Representing Spain is the maximum?

For more than it is. Representing Spain is the greatest.

Russia is the favorite?

Russia, Italy … But so do we. I wouldn’t say there is a clear favorite.

Is it superstitious? Do you do any kind of routine before or during games?

I know that I am one of those who if I do something that goes wrong, I change it and if it goes well I keep it. In Milan elegantly always take advantage of the golden point. They are going to compare me to Rafa in this: I leave the bottle of the mineral drink on the left and the bottle of water on the right. And when I finish them I leave them standing behind, I don’t throw them away.

And he asks for four balls and discards two …

It’s to calm me down, to pause, to keep the recovery times between points well, to think …

Are your dreams still being number one and winning the greatest number of ‘Grand Slam’ titles?

S. And get an Olympic medal. P. Roger Federer has little tennis left. Would you like to measure yourself before the racket hangs up? R. It would make me very excited. I want to play with everyone from the Big Three.

Which track impressed you the most?

It would say that the central of the US Open. I was very impressed by how big it is, by the noise …

Did you hesitate with the vaccine or did you want to get vaccinated?

It was clear to me that I was going to be vaccinated if that was going to benefit me so as not to have restrictions, to fly more calmly, not to pass PCR …

Wouldn’t you like to be quarantined for two weeks in a hotel room again?

It was a real nightmare. It’s just that I couldn’t even open the windows.