“I’d like to be World No. 1, a Grand Slam champion, winner of Olympic medals… I dream big.”

In the time since Carlos Alcaraz first appeared on the ATP Tour in 2020, he has never been shy about his expectations. They are no different from what you might hear from many other players of his age aspiring to make a name for themselves on the Tour. The amazing thing about Alcaraz, though, is that aged 18 he already looks set to achieve them.

Although he still has a very long career ahead of him, the Spaniard has progressed at a frightening pace. One year ago, he was still outside the Top 100 and marked as a player with the potential to be one of the world’s best. Today, Alcaraz broke into the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings at World No. 9.

“I’ve always been a normal guy. I’m not scared of fame, I’m not going to change the person I am,” Alcaraz said. “I’m happy to know that at 18 years old I’m in the Top 10, and to do it [at] the same age as my idol Rafa is impressive.”

The Spaniard accomplished the feat at 18 years, 11 months and 20 days, making him the ninth-youngest player to do so since the inception of the ATP Rankings in 1973. It is the first time someone of his age has done it since countryman Rafael Nadal aged 18 years, 10 months and 22 days. Coincidentally, or perhaps symbolically, the 36-time ATP Masters 1000 champion also achieved the feat on 25 April following the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell in 2005.

Youngest Top 10 Players

“I don’t have any limits. I want to keep playing at the level I’m at and I think that if I keep going like this I have a lot of options to keep going up,” Alcaraz said. “I want to keep enjoying myself on the court, I don’t want to touch the ceiling yet.”

Cracking the Top 10 is not the only feat Alcaraz has achieved through his talent. On top of being one of the youngest players to earn a place in the Top 10, no other player has ever reached 50 tour-level victories with so few matches played. The Spaniard only required 70 tour-level clashes to reach the benchmark, bettering the 79 needed by Djokovic, 81 for Nadal and 97 for Roger Federer.

He also reached the mark three matches earlier than his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero (73), who occupied the pinnacle of the ATP Rankings for eight weeks. The former World No. 1, apart from polishing his understudy’s technique, also takes it upon himself to teach him about his journey in 2003.

“I have Juan Carlos, who is able to tell me how difficult it is and how much of a sacrifice it takes to reach No. 1. I think I’m on the right path. If I stay on it and continue to do things well, I will have chances, but that doesn’t guarantee anything,” Alcaraz said of the advantage of having an experienced coach.

While last season he reeled out several personal firsts such as his debut win in a Grand Slam, in an ATP Masters 1000 and against a Top 10 player, this season he is taking down some more significant milestones such as winning his maiden ATP 500 trophy in Rio de Janeiro – where he was the youngest to do so since the category was created in 2009 – and a Masters 1000 crown in Miami. Since his first title in Umag in 2021, his trophy cabinet has been filling up quickly.

Alcaraz’s progress as a player has been meteoric. The 2021 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion has a fast serve that belies his years and he is solid both on his backhand and his powerful forehand. Essentially, he hits the ball extremely hard. He is capable of changing the tempo of a match, is very tactically intelligent and has in his hands the ability to produce any shot his vivid imagination can conjure up. Don’t forget about his drop shots, either.

Despite the magnitude of his success, the people that work with him every day are not particularly surprised by his quick development. To go along with all the above-mentioned strengths, Alcaraz’s team has instilled in him a culture for working extremely hard that he has welcomed with open arms, allowing him to flourish in record time. He is respectful, humble, ambitious and a winner. All this is hidden behind a permanent smile. It is a cocktail of ingredients that all add up to create one of today’s best players.

Only time will tell if he is capable of achieving his dream. Meanwhile, he is now able to boast of having done something that very few of his age have done before him — being one of the ATP Tour’s straight-A students by becoming a member of the Top 10 in the ATP Rankings.

Some of the world’s biggest stars will be in action this week with Felix Auger-Aliassime, Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev all competing as the European clay-court swing continues.

Auger-Aliassime is the top seed at the Millennium Estoril Open, where sixth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas is preparing for his title defence. Zverev leads the field on home soil at the BMW Open by American Express in Munich, where defending champion Nikoloz Basilashvili returns as the fourth seed.

ATPTour.com looks ahead at 10 things to watch this week.

View Draws: Munich | Estoril

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN ESTORIL
1) Felix Back In Form: After a stellar start to the season in which he won his first ATP Tour title in Rotterdam and helped Canada claim the ATP Cup, Auger-Aliassime cooled. But he began to rediscover his top form in Barcelona, advancing to the quarter-finals with wins over Carlos Taberner and Frances Tiafoe before a three-set loss to Diego Schwartzman. Making his main-draw debut in Estoril, the 21-year-old will be eager to build on that progress as he pursues his first tour-level trophy on clay.

2) Thiem Steps Up Comeback: Dominic Thiem has made incremental progress in his first two events back from a right-wrist injury. After a straight-sets loss in an ATP Challenger Tour event in Marbella, he took a set off John Millman at the Serbia Open last week. The Austrian will seek the first victory of his comeback against France’s Benjamin Bonzi, with eighth seed Sebastian Korda a possible second-round opponent and Auger-Aliassime a potential third-round matchup. This will be the 28-year-old’s Estoril debut.

3) Foki Returns: After reaching his first ATP Tour final at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, 22-year-old Alejandro Davidovich Fokina returns to action in Estoril. His career-high ATP Ranking of No. 27 earned him the fourth seed and a first-round bye as he seeks to improve upon a semi-final run last year in Estoril. He also advanced to the last four at the Portuguese ATP 250 in 2019 aged 19.

4) Defending Champ Ramos-Vinolas: Sixth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas won a third-set tie-break to defeat Cameron Norrie for the 2021 Estoril title, and will open his title defence against Aussie Jordan Thompson.The Spaniard dropped just one set in last year’s title run and has claimed all four of his ATP Tour trophies on clay. 

5) Borges, Sousa Represent Portugal: Wild cards Nuno Borges and Joao Sousa will be the home favourites in the singles draw. Borges, a former college star in the United States at Mississippi State University, is competing in his second ATP Tour event. The 25-year-old reached the Estoril second round as a qualifier last season. Borges also claimed a Challenger crown earlier this month in Barletta, Italy.

Sousa, currently the World No. 85, reached a career-high of No. 28 in 2016. He seeks a second tour-level title this season following his February triumph in Pune.

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN MUNICH
1) Zverev Leads Field: Zverev headlines the field at the Munich ATP 250 event as he bids to win his third title at the tournament. The World No. 3, who is competing at his second clay-court event of the season (Monte Carlo SF), lifted the trophy in 2017 and 2018, but has not been beyond the quarter-finals in Munich since. The German will face one of two #NextGenATP players — Dane Holger Rune or qualifier Jiri Lehecka — in his first match and is seeded to meet American Reilly Opelka in the semi-finals.

2) Ruud Returns To Munich: Casper Ruud has often produced his best level on clay throughout his career, winning six of his seven ATP Tour titles on the surface, including a victory in Buenos Aires this year. The Norwegian will be making his fourth appearance in Munich, where his best result came in 2021, when he made the semi-finals. The second seed will open his campaign against Slovakian Alex Molcan or qualifier Norbert Gombos.

3) #NextGenATP Stars In Action: Brandon Nakashima and Rune will both make their Munich debuts. American Nakashima is competing in his first clay-court event of 2022 and meets eighth seed Botic van de Zandschulp in the first round. The 18-year-old wild card Rune, who won an ATP Challenger Tour event on clay in Italy earlier this month, opens against fellow #NextGenATP player Lehecka, who battled through two tough qualifying matches to reach the main draw.

4) Former Winners: In addition to Zverev, the former Munich champions in the field are Nikoloz Basilashvili (2021), Cristian Garin (2019) and Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber (2016). Basilashvili is the fourth seed, Garin the fifth seed and Kohlschreiber a wild card. Basilashvili begins his tournament against Ilya Ivashka or Mackenzie McDonald. Garin, who reached the semi-finals on the Houston clay in April, faces Serbian Filip Krajinovic, while World No. 132 Kohlschreiber opens against Daniel Altmaier.

5) Mektic/Pavic Headline Doubles Draw: Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic are the top seeds in the doubles draw as they aim to lift their first trophy of the season. The Croatians will face stiff competition from second seeds John Peers and Filip Polasek and Germans Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies. Krawietz and Mies, the home favourites, captured the title in Barcelona on Sunday. The Germans won the Roland Garros trophy together in 2019 and 2020.

Despite losing to Andrey Rublev in the Serbia Open final on Sunday, World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is aiming to take encouragement out of his run in Belgrade as he looks to build on his newfound momentum in the coming weeks.

“I have to look at the positives. [I] played the final in front of my home crowd,” Djokovic said in his post-match press conference. “It was unfortunate that in the third set I ran out of gas and couldn’t give it more of a fight. Congrats to Andrey for playing another great week. He is at the top of the men’s game and one of the best players for a reason.

“I could have easily lost in the first match, so after four tough three-set battles all I can say is I am tired. Winning the tough three-set battles before this match will serve me well for the continuation of the season.

The Serbian fell to Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in his opening match in Monte Carlo last week, but showed signs he is returning to form at the ATP 250 clay-court event, earning three hard-fought third-set wins to reach his maiden final of the season.

Djokovic defeated Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic and Karen Khachanov in front of his home support, but was unable to find one final push against Rublev as he faded in the deciding set, with the second seed triumphing 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-0.

“I didn’t feel too tired until the end of the second set,” Djokovic said when reflecting on the match. “The 5-4 game was a long game and that is when I started to not feel great. I think I played well in the tie-break. I came out ready to fight another set, but it wasn’t [a] very pleasant thing for people to see on the court, so I am sorry for that kind of experience as I knew people wanted to see me fight and try and win. But it wasn’t to be this time.”

The 86-time tour-level titlist will continue to compete on Tour over the next month and while he is not 100 per cent happy with where his fitness levels are currently, he is pleased with the progress that he has made this week.

“At least this bad feeling physically came in the fourth match rather than the first match in Monte Carlo,” Djokovic said. “Things are progressing slowly but surely.”

Former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem feels that he is ready to step up his progress when he competes in just his second tour-level event of the season this coming week at the Millennium Estoril Open.

The Austrian suffered a tear in his right wrist last June, which kept him out for the rest of 2021. But he returned to the ATP Tour at the Serbia Open in Belgrade last week, showing signs of promise during his defeat to Australian John Millman in his opening match.

“I feel much better already than Belgrade. The improvement is there every single day,” Thiem said. “In practice points I’m still having troubles — not with the wrist, the wrist is fine also in points — but [in] all the movement, all the reaction, all the anticipation, I’m still not 100 per cent yet. It will take many more matches until I’m back at the top level there. So I’m not feeling capable of winning this tournament.

“But every match is super important for me now. I’m going to try my best, I’m going to fight 100 per cent from the first to the last point, even when I’m not playing my best tennis, which can happen. And that’s it. I have low expectations this week and also the next ones to come. But obviously I’m trying everything to win and I’m going to see what comes out at the end.”

While the 28-year-old understands that it will take time to return to his best, he is excited to be able to compete and train with those at the top of the game once again as he looks to build his fitness heading towards Roland Garros in May.

“Of course it’s the matches which I need, but also it’s the practice sessions with top players and those you can only get [at] the tournaments,” Thiem said. “I think that they are as important to get used to the pace again, to get used to the fast movements again, anticipation, reaction, that’s so important.

“The first short-term goal to be in a decent shape again is the French Open. I’m definitely not going to be a favourite there, but maybe I can win some matches there and if I face a top opponent, maybe I can give him a hard match. That’s the short-term goal. To make big things, I think I’m going to have to wait until the second part of the season.”

Thiem has not earned a tour-level win since May 2021, when he defeated Marton Fucsovics in Rome. The 2020 US Open champ will be eager to change that record when he faces Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi in his opening match at the ATP 250 clay-court event.

Thiem, who also played at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Marbella in March, has produced some of the best tennis of his career on clay, clinching 10 of his 17 tour-level titles on the surface. The Austrian will make his debut in Estoril this week after accepting a wild card.

“I have only been once in this country before,” Thiem said when discussing his reasoning for playing in Estoril. “When I’m traveling all around the world I want to visit all the countries, all the cities, so it was easy to choose this tournament.”

Carlos Alcaraz has taken the ATP Tour by storm in 2022 with three ATP Tour titles, including his triumph on home soil Sunday at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Has the 18-year-old revealed the secret to his success?

Alcaraz confirmed in his post-match interview that he motivates himself by listening to the soundtrack of the Rocky series.

“I try to listen to that song before every match. It motivates me,” Alcaraz said, cracking a smile. “When I listen to the music, I remember the movie and it’s amazing the fighting spirit that Rocky has. I try to have that experience in every match, so that motivates me.”

The motivation has worked all year for the teen, but especially Sunday when, like Rocky did, Alcaraz had his back against the ropes. Due to rain, the semi-finals were played Sunday morning. Alex de Minaur had two match points to clinch a straight-sets victory against the teen. On one of those points, De Minaur had a short forehand that he would normally put away.

But instead, he hit the ball too close to the middle of the court and Alcaraz contorted his body to somehow slap a forehand passing shot for a winner. The teen rallied to win the match and just hours later, despite needing three hours and 40 minutes against De Minaur, defeated mentor Pablo Carreno Busta to lift his third trophy of the season.

In a young career full of memorable moments, Carlos Alcaraz wrote another unforgettable chapter Sunday in Barcelona.

The fifth seed defeated mentor and eighth seed Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-2 to win the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Alcaraz, who has now won three titles this season, is projected to climb to No. 9 in the ATP Rankings on Monday, making him the youngest player to crack the Top 10 since Rafael Nadal did it exactly 17 years ago after lifting his first Barcelona trophy.

“It means a lot. I’ve watched this tournament since I was a kid. I always wished to play in this tournament and of course to be able to win this tournament,” Alcaraz said in his on-court interview. “I’m really, really happy to be part of the [historic] Spanish list.”

Plenty of Spanish legends have won the Barcelona title, including Rafael Nadal, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Carlos Moya. Alcaraz, Nadal and Sunday’s Belgrade champion Andrey Rublev lead the ATP Tour this season with three titles each. 

“I’ve always been a normal guy. I’m not scared of fame,” Alcaraz said. “I’m not going to change the person I am. I’m happy to know that at 18 years old I’m in the Top 10, and to do it [at] the same age as my idol Rafa is impressive.”

Although the scoreline of the final looks straightforward, the day was anything but. The semi-finals were pushed to Sunday because of rain, and the 18-year-old needed three hours and 40 minutes to defeat Alex de Minaur in the longest best-of-three match of the season. In that clash, the Aussie had two match points to win in straight sets. On one of those match points, De Minaur had a short forehand with the court open, but allowed Alcaraz a look at a passing shot, which the teen delivered perfectly.

The #NextGenATP star showed no fatigue in the final, overwhelming Carreno Busta, who is like Alcaraz’s older brother, in one hour and six minutes. Both Spaniards train at the JC Ferrero Equelite Sport Academy and Carreno Busta’s coach, Samuel Lopez, used to coach Alcaraz’s coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero. During the trophy ceremony, Alcaraz and Carreno Busta even sat on the same bench as they waited to be called up.

So although this was the pair’s first ATP Head2Head meeting, they were plenty familiar with one another. Alcaraz’s power controlled the action and he did not face a break point, while converting four of his 10 break chances to triumph.

“When my semi-final match finished, I rested, ate and I did my routine,” Carreno Busta said. “As we share team members, we do similar routines and we have coincided in some moments. We are friends first and we have to respect that.”

Earlier in the day, Carreno Busta defeated sixth seed Diego Schwartzman in straight sets. But he was unable to find the same consistency against his countryman, missing a forehand long at 2-2 to relinquish the first break of the match and a short backhand on set point to give up another service break.

It was clear Carreno Busta had to go for more to try to match Alcaraz’s weight of shot, but he was never able to find enough of a rhythm to trouble his younger opponent.

“It wasn’t the match I expected,” Carreno Busta said. “Carlos was playing a very aggressive game this afternoon and he was very effective. It was very difficult play against him today.”

One year ago in Barcelona, then-World No. 119 Alcaraz lost in the first round against Frances Tiafoe in straight sets. Now he is the tournament winner. 

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Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies claimed an emotional victory at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Sunday afternoon, fighting past Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski to clinch their first title together since successfully defending their crown at Roland Garros in 2020.

The German duo reunited at the start of the year after Mies missed most of 2021 following knee surgery, and the unseeded pairing looked back to its best as it came from behind in the final to secure a 6-7(3), 7-6(5), 10-6 win at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899.

“It feels amazing,” said Mies after the pairing completed its maiden ATP 500 triumph in Spain. “It’s been a long time since we won our last title, the end of 2020, and I was injured all of last year, so I couldn’t be more relieved right now.”

The championship match triumph was the second match of the day for both teams, with Krawietz and Mies stepping on court early on Sunday to win their rain-delayed semi-final clash with Santiago Gonzalez and Andres Molteni, 6-7(6), 6-4, 10-7.

“It’s a special moment for us, we came through a lot of tough matches this week, a lot of close ones, we could have been out a few times already,” added Mies. “Especially this morning, playing two times today, tough matches. I’m very happy with our performance and how we managed to get the win in the end, unbelievable.”

Back in the winner’s circle 🏆

Kevin Krawietz & Andreas Mies clinch the Barcelona title!#BCNOpenBS pic.twitter.com/rVqde0xwc0

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 24, 2022

Krawietz and Mies recovered from the disappointment of losing the opening-set tie-break to edge Koolhof and Skupski in both the second-set tie-break and the Match Tie-break as they proved the more consistent team over the course of a two-hour, 27-minute clash on Pista Rafa Nadal.

“In doubles it’s always tight with a Match Tie-break to stay mentally strong,” said Krawietz. “We played not so well sometimes, but in the tournament we were mentally good, so we are happy to have managed the matches and of course we are very happy to win the tournament here in Barcelona.”

Despite the defeat, Koolhof and Skupski can look back on another strong week as they extend their winning record in 2022 to 29-6. The Dutch-British duo have been one of the in-form pairings on Tour this year, picking up three ATP 250 titles and reaching the final at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

Andrey Rublev captured his third tour-level title of the season Sunday, overcoming World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and a lively Serbian crowd to complete his Serbia Open debut in style.

In a hard-fought clash, the second dug deep against Djokovic as he hit with relentless power and intensity to outlast the home favourite 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-0 at the ATP 250 clay-court event.

The 24-year-old saved five set points in the second set to force a tie-break and while he was unable to prevent Djokovic from levelling the match, Rublev regrouped in the decider as he looked the fitter of the two to triumph after two hours and 29 minutes.

“It is big to play against you and share the court for the second time,” Rublev said to Djokovic during the trophy ceremony. “I hope we have more battles. I feel so great here, it is a very nice city. It feels really special. I want to say a big thanks to all the spectators for supporting all the players all week. To see full crowds again is special for all of us.”

Rublev has now equalled Spaniard Rafael Nadal for the most tour-level titles in 2022, having also clinched crowns in Marseille and Dubai in February. With his maiden victory over a World No. 1, the World No. 8 has levelled his ATP Head2Head series against Serbian Djokovic at 1-1, gaining revenge for his defeat at the Nitto ATP Finals last season.

Djokovic was competing in his third event of the season as he aimed to clinch his maiden title of the year against Rublev. The 34-year-old, who lost in the quarter-finals in Dubai and suffered a shock second-round defeat against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in Monte Carlo, battled past Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic and Karen Khachanov in three sets as he worked his way back into form. However, the court time eventually caught up with the top seed against Rublev..

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Rublev arrived in Belgrade off the back of disappointing ATP Masters 1000 performances in Miami and Monte Carlo, where he lost in the second round and third round, respectively.

However, he found his top form this week, dropping just one set en route to the title as he also eliminated #NextGenATP Czech Jiri Lehecka, Japan’s Taro Daniel and Italian Fabio Fognini with heavy-hitting performances.

Sunday’s final was the fourth championship match of the season that featured two Top 10 players, with Rublev’s win improving his tour-level championship match record to 11-5.

In an entertaining final, Rublev quickly found his range as he demonstrated good footwork to dictate on his aggressive forehand. The second seed continuously forced Djokovic deep behind the baseline as he took large cuts at the ball to pull the Serbian around the court. The World No. 8 broke Djokovic twice in the first set and saved the one break point he faced to move ahead.

Fuelled by confidence, Rublev would have been eager to pull away at the start of the second set, but Djokovic had other ideas. He began to hit with greater depth and started to win the backhand exchanges to pull into a 2-0 lead. However, Rublev demonstrated his fighting qualities as he quickly levelled at 2-2, before he saved two set points in a mammoth service game at 4-5 to hold.

Djokovic then fended off a break point himself at 5-5, before Rublev once again found big serves and heavy forehands at the crucial moment to save three more set points on serve at 5-6 and force a tie-break. The Serbian would not be denied, though, storming into a 5/2 lead in the tie-break before letting out a roar when he levelled the match.

The effort the World No. 1 put into the second set seemed to catch up with him in the decider, though, with Djokovic fading fast in the third set as he was unable to match Rublev’s intensity. The second seed continued to strike the ball aggressively in the third set, but Djokovic no longer had the answers, with Rublev soaring to victory.

Djokovic now holds a 37-6 record in Serbia, having lifted the trophy at the Serbia Open in 2009 and 2011 and at the Belgrade Open last season.