“Not Afraid”: Carlos Alcaraz Optimistic on Winning a Grand Slam in 2022

The newly crowned Miami Open champion Carlos Alcaraz is riding high on his current form. This was not only the biggest win in his career but for Spanish people as well. The win was emphatic as he became 1st Spanish player to lift a trophy at Hard Rock Stadium.

Many Spanish greats, including Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer, congratulated him.

He even got a phone call from the King Felipe of Spain. The “youngster to shine” is now looking to go ahead and win even bigger trophies this season.

Carlos Alcaraz has his eyes set on Grand Slam in 2022

Alcaraz has been in sensational form right now. He is 18-2 in this season, while 23-2 since the Next Gen ATP Finals in Nov 2021. Carlos gave a tough fight to the opponents in the 2 losses he had in that period. He lost to Matteo Berrettini in a 5-set thriller at the 2022 Australian Open, while fellow countryman Rafael Nadal beat him in 3-sets at Indian Wells.

The quality is there to challenge and even beat Top-10 players in the big matches. While talking to Spanish Newspaper Marca, he said, “I would tell you that I am prepared, I am confident, I am also physically and mentally. Maybe it’s not Roland-Garros, but I can win a Grand Slam this year. And I’m not afraid to say it.”

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The confidence is certainly high for an 18-years old player. He managed to beat some of the top players, like Diego Schwartzman and Berrettini, to clinch Rio Open. While in Miami Open, he overcame Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud, and Hubert Hurkacz.

Alcaraz records at the Grand slams as of now

 Debuted in 2018, Carlos Alcaraz has shown great improvements in his plays. He adapted to different surfaces and situations well, thanks to his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero. Though Carlos has played only 1 season in the Grand Slam tournament, he managed to reach the quarter-finals of the 2021 US Open.

His current form and nationality make him one of the favorites for Roland Garros. But Carlos told Marca, that it might not be French Open, but he will defiantly go for a Grand Slam title this season. If we check his records on different surfaces, there is very little to differentiate (72.7% on hard court, 72% on Clay court).

In any which ways, if Carlos manages to win a Grand Slam this season he will be in the top 5 youngest male athletes to win any Majors. US international Chang holds the record of being the youngest one (17 years 110 days), while Pete Sampras comes second (19 years 28 days).

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Even if Carlos wins the French Open final on 5th June 2022, He will be 3rd youngest (19 years 30 days) to win a grand slam.