By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Wednesday April 6, 2022
Speaking to Spanish reporters after winning his first Masters 1000 title at Miami, Carlos Alcaraz says he believes he is ready to win a Grand Slam title.
He was asked if he was ready to win Roland-Garros by a reporter. His reply was telling.
“I would say yes. I am prepared, I have confidence, the level, the physical and the mentality to be able to win,” said Alcaraz. “Maybe not Roland Garros, but a 'Grand Slam' this year, I do see myself prepared. And I'm not afraid to say it. I know there are great players: there is Rafa, Medvedev, Tsitsipas, Zverev, Djokovic... All the best and the favourites. But I feel ready to win one, although you don't know when it might come and the same thing happens with number one. I hope it arrives as soon as possible.”
If Alcaraz is able to win one of the next four majors he would become the first teenager to win a men’s singles Grand Slam title since Rafael Nadal triumphed at Roland-Garros just days after his 19th birthday in 2005.
Already the youngest Miami Open men’s singles champion ever, and the third youngest Masters 1000 champion, Alcaraz is setting his sights on the clay this spring. He’ll play at Monte-Carlo, which takes place from April 10 to April 17, next.
“Last year almost everything was new experiences,” Alcaraz said. “I had to go through it and experience certain things. Now I am a totally different person and player. All the experiences that I have been living have helped me to face the first semifinals and final of a Masters 1000. I always want more and I hope to get my second Masters 1,000 on the clay..”
What is the secret to Alcaraz’s meteoric rise? He says it is simple - he just lays the groundwork for success every single day.
“I think everything is [due to] work,” he said. “Every day I put my brick in my wall. I lay my brick in the best possible way. My physio Juanjo sent me a motivational video. The meaning was: don't try to make the wall bigger and more impressive but try to lay your brick every day in the best possible way. That is exactly what I am doing.”