• Alcaraz-Berrettini "If rest well I will have my options"
  • Results Men's draw
  • Crónica Alcaraz beats Jarry in the first demanding test

Always like never before Carlos Alcaraz appears perched on the posters of Wimbledon 2023 rubbing shoulders directly with his idolized Roger Federer and the legendary Björn Borg. The All England Club has already made its commitment to the future and has laid the green carpet to the Spaniard, cheered by the public on the center court and celebrated by the BBC as "the new star that tennis needed".

The Daily Telegraph greeted him in headlines such as the future "King Carlos", ready to inherit the crown of the "big three" (Roger, Rafa and Novak). The Guardian delves into the secrets of his "star power" and his status as a "wunderkind" (child prodigy) at age 20. The Daily Mail already considers him the most profitable "ace" in tennis, with his lucrative contracts with Luis Vuitton, Clavin Klein, BMW, Nike and Rolex.

His opponent on Monday in the fourth round, Matteo Berrettini, finalist in 2021, has joined the chorus of fans and has openly acknowledged: "I played against Carlos two years ago and already then I said to myself: 'This boy is something special'. " World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev predicted after seeing him win the Queen's final: "The way he plays on all surfaces, Carlos will win up to five Wimbledons."

"I know what I'm capable of"

On Saturday against Nicolás Jarry, the Spaniard showed, however, his problems adjusting to the center court, in which he has only played three games to date. The troubles against the Chilean giant do not seem to have made a dent in the confidence of the Murcia, who still does not take off his "amulet" hat and invariably repeating before the press the "mantra" from the first day: "I want to play the final and better if it is against Novak (Djokovic)".

His way of saying it, with total self-confidence after almost four hours of battle, does not sound like a thirst for revenge or personal revenge, for the "puncture" in the semifinal of Roland Garros. He lets go in the most natural way, with total confidence after his eighth consecutive victory on grass: "I'm not surprised to be in this position because I know my abilities. I know what I'm capable of and I've worked hard to be here."

This is what Alcaraz has, who knows how to disarm the media and the public with his spontaneity and his smile at the end of matches. "I consider myself a lucky guy: everywhere I go, people support me," he said in his triumphant debut on Court 1 against Jeremy Chardy. "This is the most beautiful court I've ever played on," he said after the hard-fought four-set victory against Jarry in the center, surrendered at his feet before the "big week".

It has the backing of the public

After the defeat of Andy Murray -and of all the British men and women in the individual competition-, Alcaraz hopes to make the most of the "public factor" between now and the hypothetical final: "Probably, I am the guy that people expect to make a good tournament, and to win if possible. I will try to take advantage of this. Public love can help you recover in hard times, and I will try to make something like that happen."

His third-set slip against Jarry resurrected the fear of the right thigh injury he suffered in the Queen's final. Alcaraz claims to reach the fourth round of Wimbledon (where he was eliminated last year against Jannik Sinner) in good physical and mental condition.

Despite the occasional difficulties to deploy his game, the "number one" ensures that his sensations on the center court improve with each match and that he is willing to introduce the necessary adjustments ("Navratilova says I have to climb more") against an accomplished grass specialist like Berrettini, considered by Djokovic himself as one of the great favorites to the title.

  • tennis
  • Carlos Alcaraz
  • Novak Djokovic
  • Articles Carlos Fresneda

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Learn more