The 2024 tennis season is officially in the books, and for Carlos Alcaraz, it’s been a year of incredible highs and a few surprising lows. Alcaraz has already cemented his place as one of the most amazing talents in the sport. The 21-year-old has four Grand Slams in his collection, two of which he won this year. The Spaniard clinched his second Wimbledon trophy and his first French Open major this year. But despite his achievements, whispers of a “mid” season began to emerge after a string of losses in the second half of the year.

The World No. 3 hit a slump after he defended his Wimbledon title. He suffered three high-profile defeats: a loss to Novak Djokovic in the Paris Olympics final, a second-round exit to Gaël Monfils at the Cincinnati Masters, and a shocking loss to World No. 80 Botic van de Zandschulp at the US Open. For a player with his potential, these results inevitably raised questions. But if you ask his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, there’s no debate about how the season went. In his eyes, Alcaraz delivered an exceptional year.

When asked about the criticism by Puntodebreak Ferrero said, “Some will think that it has not been such a good year. We think the opposite: it has been a spectacular year. Winning a Grand Slam is very, very complicated, so winning two is a magnificent season, although you can always improve things, such as off-court or training certain aspects.”

He further highlighted the qualities that make Alcaraz special. The 2003 French Open winner said, ” Carlos is very aware of the things he has to improve every year. I see him more mature every day when it comes to being a professional and doing things with more head. I like how he is facing the preseason; I see him very focused on the things he wants to improve or the things that did not go so well this year.”

Much of Alcaraz’s success can be attributed to his strong partnership with Ferrero. Talking to Revelo in an interview, Alcaraz shared how important his coach is to him. “The truth is that he is a very important person for me. As I have said many times, I already consider him family. I trust him 100%. I can talk to him about everything both professionally and personally. He is a great fundamental support in my life. He has made me grow a lot as a player and as a person.” Alcaraz said.

As his partnership with Ferrero continues, the Spaniard has also added veteran coach Samuel Lopez to his team, getting ready for the upcoming season.

Carlos Alcaraz makes changes to his coaching team

Carlos Alcaraz has appointed another coach along with Juan Carlos Ferrero, who has been with the 21-year-old since he was 15. Samuel Lopez helped Pablo Carreño Busta capture seven ATP Tour singles titles and reach a career-high ranking of World No. 10.

Talking about the recent addition to their team, Ferrero said ,”When you have been in charge for so many years, having a person with Samuel’s experience in the team is beneficial for everyone. I think it will help us. It will help Carlos to hear things from another perspective, although always working along the same lines. It will be positive for him, when you are on top of a person all year there is always the risk of hating that person a little, that is why a change of scenery is often positive.”

The Spanish sensation has already started preseason training, skipping warm-up tournaments to focus solely on the Australian Open, a slam he is yet to conquer. The World No.3 is busy practicing with Matteo Berrettini in Spain for the same.

With Samuel Lopez’s new perspective and Juan Carlos Ferrero’s guidance, Carlos Alcaraz is set to take on 2025. Will he be able to conquer the courts at the Happy Slam?