Unlike many of his contemporaries, Carlos Alcaraz has always coveted Wimbledon. Credit: Reuters/Peter Cziborra
The day after winning the biggest title of his career in New York last September, Carlos Alcaraz was asked to describe his relationship with other helmets. “As a child, I followed all the majors,” he replied. “But Wimbledon is probably the coolest.”
It must have been music to the ears of the All England Club. Not every modern player feels comfortable on the grass. Some even write off June and early July as a bad batch. But Alcaraz has shown such interest in this surface that his ATP Tour record now shows one grass court event played, one grass court event won.
By simply joining Queen's, which began ten days after his French Open campaign collapsed due to a violent bout of seizures, Alcaraz signaled his ambition to become a Wimbledon champion.
This may seem obvious. Who among the top players won't be desperate to hold on to the trophy on Center Court?
But then look at Kasper Ruud, who has finished second in three of the last five Grand Slams. While Alcaraz was picking up grass stains on his sneakers, Ruud has spent the past two weeks attending the Weeknd concert, playing golf, target shooting and sunbathing on the yacht.
Among the younger generation, it was Alcaraz who laid the foundation, in a rather literal sense. He's someone who volleys, works on his movement and perfects his pitch.
Alcaraz was looking to hone his playing technique on the grass in front of Wimbledon. Photo: Getty Images/Clive Brunskill
And that's exactly what Wimbledon needs after a few uncomfortable years. He needs to be treated with the same subdued reverence by the stars of tomorrow as they have been with Novak Djokovic. One of the key moments in Djokovic's life story came when he was six years old: after seeing Pete Sampras lift the Wimbledon trophy, he decided to build a replica out of cardboard and silver foil.
There was never any doubt when the Big Four were at their peak, which was the season's most coveted prize. Rafael Nadal has won 14 French Opens, but his autobiography is built on a detailed analysis of his first Wimbledon crown. Andy Murray became the UK's favorite athlete when he ended a 77-year drought for male home players. And Roger Federer? The central courtyard was in fact his living room.
And yet it was not the happiest decade for the All England Club. We had a Covid cancellation in 2020. Then, last year, the scandal over Russian participation, as a result of which the tournament was held without ranking points.
Because of that lost summer of 2020, the best young players in the world, including Alcaraz, have become less visible. on lawns than they usually expect. Partly because of this, some have decided they can afford to be dismissive of Wimbledon. Last week, a top player told Telegraph Sport: «I've definitely heard coaches say to their players, 'I don't care if you don't win the match on grass.'
It's not exactly new. There have always been people like the Chilean ex-world No. 1 Marcelo Rios who think grass is for cows. This style is especially popular among those who, like current world number one Iga Swiatek, rely on heavy topspin because Wimbledon courts favor flat shots and low trajectories. Many such skeptics are counting down the days until the tour returns to concrete and acrylic.
However, both Alcaraz and Nadal, neither of whom played grass as children, have shown what can be achieved when the motivation is there. Their agents should be happy too. Wimbledon remains the most popular event of the year, the most prestigious prize both historically and aesthetically. Its commercial superiority means there are millions of reasons to work on grass court technique.
For all of Alcaraz's talent and enthusiasm, he only made ten competitive matches on grass. Facing the surprise Arthur Rinderknech in the first round of Queen's, he had to scramble back after a set and a break. But after that, he found his balance by crushing his next four opponents in straight sets.
A key part of that learning process, Alcaraz admitted, was watching videos of Federer and Murray on YouTube. As he put it: «They move great on grass, [and] I want to be like that.»
While Alcaraz is recovering from a broken hip, he has every chance to go all the way to the end. to the Wimbledon final. If he succeeds, his opponent is likely to be Djokovic, a man whose last loss on Center Court came back in 2013.
It would probably be too much to expect Alcaraz to replace the reigning champion who is starting a tournament with more than even odds for the bookies despite being just one man in a draw out of 128 players.
However, the last week has shown Alcaraz to be the most interesting young player to emerge in 15 years – on the right track. He is preparing to become not only the future Wimbledon champion, but also the next great representative of tennis on grass.
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