Carlos Alcaraz continues to manage not to lose an ounce of freshness when he entered the world of tennis a little over a year and a half ago, and monopolizes most of the attention in every tournament he steps into. nor injurieswho stopped it at the end of last season and at the beginning of 2023, nor did the pressure of the spotlights that consistently portray him as the heir to the ‘Big Three’ didn’t up a notch in Murcian’s character.He regained the ground he lost in the last month due to the physical setbacks he experienced in the first months of the season.

doing it in america fertile ground for tennis and where he found the perfect ecosystem to start building a record that frightened his 19-year-old. Two of his Three Masters 1,000 (Miami 2022 and final Indian Wells) and his only Grand Slam (US Open) they reached the ground yankeewith an audience that embraced him as another citizen because of his creative play –“I try to create and realize strange and beautiful frames”– and nuisance against monotony. And that’s where he plans to continue polishing his trophy collection before preparing for the clay court tour that will take him to Roland Garros, the second major tournament of the year.

Almost without rest after conquering the Coachella Valley, Alcaraz will begin their championship defense this Friday at Key Biscayne against Argentina’s Facundo Bagnis (20:00; Movistar Deportes). ambition to win Sunlight Double (Indian Wells-Miami duo) same season. Forgetting the tears in his stomach and right leg that caused him to miss the Masters Cup and the Australian Open, he needed three tournaments to dispel all doubts about how he would bounce back after a 102-day hiatus. hiatus , since he almost conquered the US Open and became the youngest number one in history

just a defeat

“Coming back to the competition is always difficult, but we hoped he would come back well. Doing it this way gives you great confidence in what is to come.Says coach Antonio Martínez Cascales, who accompanied him on the South American tour until he joined Juan Carlos Ferrero and was part of the team that guided the steps of Alcaraz since childhood. “It was slowly coming into play in Argentina and winning for the first time gave him a lot of morale even if it was just an ATP 250.. He was scared in the final in Brazil and maybe that’s why we expected it to cost a little more with the surface change when it came to the USA, but Played a 9.5 tournament, let’s not say 10”.

Murcian tennis player after returning to the field 14 wins in 15 games, three finals and two titles (Buenos Aires and Indian Wells)He regained his sense of being number one and in top form on the ATP standings just before reaching the tournament where he won his first major victory a year ago and became the first Spaniard to win in Florida.

The story has changed a lot since then for Alcaraz, who came to Miami in 2022 with no pressure and no promises, and now doing so with the lead role and the imperative to win to keep number one. Only 260 points separates him from Novak Djokovic, which the United States has banned for refusing the vaccine, so it’s worth just regaining the title to stay at the top of the standings.

“Winning him back meant a lot to me.. After returning to the position that had accredited him as the world’s best tennis player a few days ago, he admitted it was a goal and assured him that it would “help him continue to perform at his best” despite what had happened. at the end of last year.

“I didn’t do things 100%”

“There is The profound difference between this moment that saves someone and the moment it arrives for the first time in September”, adds Martínez Cascales, admitting that the “bombing” of what he went through just a few months ago was hard for Alcaraz to digest and is now experienced as “something more normal.” As the Spanish tennis player said during the months he was out of work, “I didn’t do things the 100% way”, something that helps her realize how important it is to “maintain a routine throughout the year, rest, take supplements, eat well…”.

“Both her and her personal environment are more aware that the problem now is to keep working and have peace of mind most days, because back then it was the lack of commitments that took away the training and focus. Something you have to live to realize”reflects Martínez Cascales, who went through the same process when training Juan Carlos Ferrero. “You can’t take away what you have with sponsors, but there are others, such as corporate or social ones, that you can manage or cascade over time. He wanted to cover everything and tennis season is tough, doesn’t leave you time for everything and ends up paying the price. That’s what he meant when he said he wasn’t doing the right thing,” explains Villena’s coach.

It is a learning that is transferred to the track, where the accelerated maturity process continues to show that it continues to run its course. “My attitude improved, I relax and have fun, I don’t feel pressure; That’s why I played at such a high level. Now I feel that there is not much pressure on me, I play comfortably. “Since last Sunday, Alcaraz has confidence in every shot I take and it doesn’t matter if I miss.” youngest tennis player in history –19 years 10 months, 21 for Russian Marat Safin– to reclaim the highest position in the ranking after giving up.

“This is a logical and normal process and There’s still a lot to mature. What we are looking for is to be more organized in matches without losing his character and stance on the field, his cheerfulness and self-confidence, which is very positive. Something he bought at Indian Wells, like this”.

With Djokovic absent from the fight and Rafael Nadal striving for the dirt lap, the Spaniard is arguably the man to beat in the second Masters 1,000 of the season. However If we continue to win in Florida, it will be difficult to maintain number one in the next tournaments..

All the way to Rome, a tournament that preceded Roland Garros, 1,510 more points to defend Harvested after winning in Barcelona and Madrid last year and losing in the first round at Monte Carlo, A range where the Serbian barely added 520 last year. A challenge that Alcaraz now looks ready for, yes.