Teen tennis star Carlos Alcaraz said he has 22-time Grand Slam winners Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic to thank for his form at the Indian Wells Masters. The 19-year-old catapulted himself to world No. 1 after winning his first major tournament at the US Open last year – but three months after injury saw him drop a spot in the world rankings.
An abdominal rupture knocked Alcaraz out of the ATP Finals and the Davis Cup Finals, but the Spanish player still held the No. 1 spot in the world. A hamstring injury sustained in training led to the teenager missing the Australian Open and losing his ranking title.
Alcaraz returned to his normal form after returning to action by defeating Cameron Norrie in the final of the Argentine Open, putting himself up against an attack at the Indian Wells Masters. The world No. 2 will meet Yannick Sinner in the semi-finals after beating Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4 6-4 in the quarter-finals.
During his time with his injury, Alcaraz said he focused on how tennis greats Nadal and Djokovic bounced back from setbacks during their playing careers. The Spanish star said: “I look for the big players, Djokovic or Rafa, when they come from injury and maybe they have a big percentage to win the tournament after injury.
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“I looked at them a little bit when I was injured, you know, in training. They motivated me to play a good game after being injured in the first tournaments. I was surprised when I won in Buenos Aires, but now, I’m not surprised by it.”
Nadal is now on his way back to fitness after sustaining a leg injury during his shock second-round defeat to Mackenzie McDonald at the Australian Open. Monte Carlo Masters tournament director David Massi has provided an update and hopes Nadal will be ready to open the clay court season between April 8-13.
