‘Pretty Special’ – Carlos Alcaraz on Playing Against Rafael Nadal on the Professional Tour

Carlos Alcaraz has made a resounding start to the 2022 season. The Next-Gen star began his campaign this year at the Australian Open. He had a decent run at the opening Major Down Under, before going down to Matteo Berrettini in the third round in a five-set thriller. Further, he won his first title of the season at the Rio Open. En route to the title, he avenged his Australian Open defeat, prevailing over Berrettini in the quarterfinals in Rio.

He continued his memorable run at the ‘Sunshine Double’. He reached the semifinals in Indian Wells, before losing to Rafael Nadal in the last-four clash. Subsequently, Alcaraz won the biggest title of his career in Miami. The 18-year-old defeated Casper Ruud to clinch his maiden Masters 1000 title. After the match, he opened up on facing his ‘idol’, Rafael Nadal, on the tennis court.

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Carlos Alcaraz talks about facing Rafael Nadal

During the post-match interview after lifting the Miami Open title, Alcaraz revealed his emotions about playing against the 21-time Major champion. He said, “Well, Rafa is my idol. I looked up to him when I was young. He inspired me a lot when I was young watching his matches. His big matches, he was pretty amazing to learn up from him when I was young, and yeah, of course, to be around him in the tour, be able to play against him, is pretty special.”

The two faced off for the first time at the Madrid Open last season. In the Round-of-32 match, Nadal prevailed over Alcaraz in straight sets 6-1, 6-2. Further, their second meeting came at the Indian Wells Masters last month. In their enticing epic, Alcaraz gave a good account of himself, before losing in a three thrilling sets in the semifinals in the Californian desert.

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While Nadal had to withdraw from the Miami Masters due to an injury, he would be proud of Alcaraz’s performance at the tournament. With the clay-court swing just around the corner, it will be fascinating to witness their match-up on their favorite surface in the upcoming tournaments on red dirt.