Carlos Alcaraz is always open to new experiences. The Spaniard loves traveling, as he mentioned in his LV campaign last December: “It’s great to travel a lot. To see new cultures, new places, new countries.” After his recent upset in Melbourne, where he fought valiantly against Novak Djokovic but lost 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4, Alcaraz is looking ahead. That loss cut short his dream of adding the only major title missing from his Grand Slam tally. But focusing on the future, he’s already got his next first planned out!

On January 28, the Japan Open Tennis social media announced that Alcaraz would compete in Japan for the first time ever. They wrote, “The Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis 2025 🎾 will be held from September 22nd (Mon) to 30th (Tue), and this year Carlos Alcaraz has been selected as a participant!” Previously, Alcaraz had only participated in tournaments in China and Shanghai. Which brings up an interesting point.

An X user reposted the announcement, pointing out, “🚨| Carlos Alcaraz 🇪🇸 has been confirmed for Tokyo. It looks like he won’t be defending Beijing.” Last year during the Asian swing, Carlos competed at the China Open, where he defeated World No.1 Jannik Sinner in the final. However, at the Shanghai Masters, he reached the quarterfinals but lost in straight sets to Tomas Machac, ending his impressive 12-match win streak. He’s tasted win and loss in this part of the Asian swing, perhaps that’s why he’s taking a different route this time around.

On the other hand, it could also mean that he’s just being conscientious with his scheduling. After facing fatigue and claiming that the hectic tour “will kill them,” could it be that he’s threading carefully this season and aiming for bigger goals?

Carlos emulates Rafael Nadal in terms of his schedule

Carlos Alcaraz may not have wrapped up the year as the No. 1 player in the world, but let’s be real—his talent is off the charts! The young Spaniard last hit the court at the ATP Finals in Turin, where he faced a tough round-robin elimination. After arriving at this big event, the 21-year-old opened up about how the grueling tour schedule had taken a toll on him mentally. “It’s been a demanding year,” he said, and you could feel the weight of it in his words.

Here’s where it gets interesting! Former American player Steve Johnson shared some insights back in December that might lighten Alcaraz’s scheduling struggles. Unlike his idol Rafael Nadal, who played every ATP 1000 Masters event and often faced injuries, Alcaraz is taking a smarter approach. Johnson pointed out on the ‘Nothing Major’ podcast, “Looking back at Rafael Nadal’s career, someone I’m sure he looked up to quite a bit, he played every tournament and won every Masters series forever but was hurt a lot. I feel like Carlos is doing his schedule strictly to win the Slams. He is missing Masters series, he skipped Madrid, or he’s not playing Montreal or whatever, I think his only goal is to win Slams. Maybe I am wrong on that but that is what it feels like his schedule is doing.”

Smart move, right? By skipping some of those lower-ranked tournaments, Alcaraz seems focused on preserving his energy for the Grand Slams. The 2024 tour calendar definitely threw Alcaraz for a loop. He wasn’t alone in his frustrations; top players like Stefanos Tsitsipas and WTA star Iga Swiatek also voiced their concerns about the hectic schedule.

After his loss to Norwegian Casper Ruud at the ATP Finals, Alcaraz shared candidly in the post-match press conference: “I’m tired mentally. A lot of matches, really tight schedule, really demanding year with not too many days off, not too many period of you could rest, you could practice at home. It’s kind of you finish one week or you finish a swing, you only have two or three days off and then you have to go to other tournaments to other part of the world.”

So, what’s next for this rising star? Following his Melbourne exit, Alcaraz is set to compete at the ABN AMRO Open, an ATP 500 event. He’ll be the second seed there, with defending champion Jannik Sinner taking the top spot. Other big names include Daniil Medvedev, Alex de Minaur, Andrey Rublev, Grigor Dimitrov, Holger Rune, and Hubert Hurkacz. Will he shine in this upcoming tournament? Share your thoughts in the comments!