Carlos Alcaraz: Three undreamt-of strengths in analysis
Carlos Alcaraz worked his way up to the top 30 in the ATP world rankings in 2021. Tennis insider Marco Kühn analyzes the strengths of the Spanish teenager.
by Marco Kühn
last edit: Nov 17, 2021, 06:21 am
The seven spectators clapped in fear. This young guy, full of passion and fire, whipped himself loudly forward, drowning out the lame audience. Clench your fist in front of your nose and look at the coach. Once again, a forehand hit no more than three centimeters over the edge of the net found its target. In the back, in the opposing backhand corner, unreachable.
Carlos Alcaraz, on May 5th. Turned 18 this year and won four titles on the Challenger Tour in 2020. Where the number of viewers is low and some net edges are not stretched tight. He ended 2020 with a match record of 44-7. What Stefanos Tsitsipas probably didn't know in New York: This record included a 10-0 on hard court.
In this article we will find out what qualities make Carlos Alcaraz's game so strong. We will also take a close look at how his game has developed in a short period of time.
Chances are you can take some advice from this article for your own game with you.
1) Transition: The transition from the baseline to the grid
You can feel that Alcaraz is being worked on. Juan Carlos Ferrero is a little professor who knows exactly what he's doing. Alcaraz was still a bit of the gum on the baseline in 2020. He was often stuck there, played extremely aggressively - and made mistakes. His game philosophy expects and forgives mistakes.
One can assume that Ferrero wanted to minimize this rate of avoidable mistakes without letting the aggressiveness of his protégé dwindle. The solution? He sent Alcaraz more on the network. Spanish tennis players are still associated with the slippery clay courts and the half-high spin strokes, after which they dig themselves three meters behind the baseline. Alcaraz takes this picture, throws it on the floor and steps on it with a smile. His game is different. And accordingly, his success is also on a different level.
His forehand is a powerful whip that any opponent would like to take out of the game. What makes this forehand even more dangerous is the targeted, very well thought-out approach to the net. The opponent is forced into a strong pass ball or praise. If Alcaraz confidently implements this gaming philosophy, then he can hardly be grabbed. His routes to the network are by no means those of a sandpit hustler who stumbled haphazardly forward. They are rehearsed, trained and the consequences of a clearly structured plan.
We can say: A great strength in the Spaniard's game is the forehand, in combination with the transition from the baseline to the net - the transition.
2) never below 100%
There is more to a true champion than a few hard blows. A champion knows that he has to subordinate everything to success. He knows he has to make more sacrifices than those he wants to overtake. And a true champion also knows that he always has to give 100%. Especially when nobody is looking.
Many players give this 100% when they play in front of a large audience in the night session - which is perfectly fine. Carlos Alcaraz is different. He would probably cheer himself on with clenched fists and make eye contact when he is alone in the park against a ball wall.
This setting is in no way acted or part of a show. It is the firmly integrated belief at the core of his psyche. This conviction of never giving less than 100% is the reason why, as such a young player, after such a great success as in New York against Tsitsipas, he was also able to win the match afterwards, on a smaller court against a smaller opponent.
Inner conviction plays a decisive role in competitive sport. Imagine serving in front of 10,000 spectators at 5-4 in the fifth set for the match. If your inner conviction is that you are actually not made for these situations, then you will lose it.
Carlos Alcaraz presented himself as combative and mentally strong at the small challenger tournaments as in the cauldron of New York. This psychological strength, which is rubbed off on his gaming philosophy somewhere, will also lead him to successes in the future, where the viewer thinks: "Crazy, you would not have expected him to do that!"
We can say: The inner conviction never to give less than 100% is the complementary mental strength to the playful qualities of Carlos Alcaraz.
3) Brutal defense
"It looks like it's remote controlled!" That's what my buddy said when Alcaraz was scraping right-left from the baseline everything that looked like a fluffy ball of felt.
Imagine you're playing against a guy who digs up every ball. And then, when you get too short, the bullet rumbles mercilessly around your ears. Many players who are very strong offensively are vulnerable on their defense. As soon as they are moved a lot, the error rate increases. Your game is no longer so dangerous for your opponent. In addition to his red alert offensive, Carlos Alcaraz also has a strong defensive game. He doesn't just push the ball back, he can also counter.
He is playfully able to turn the opponent's offensive around with one blow and put himself on the offensive. We have seen these skills in Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic for several moons.
Conclusion
Many players have strong blows. There are many guys out there who can play the ball extremely hard. Carlos Alcaraz also has qualities that turn a success at the next-gen finals into a leisurely morning stroll.
What can you take away from Carlos Alcaraz for your game? We can say that he has consciously developed his strengths. He combined his strong forehand with a good transition to the net. You may not be able to copy this detail one-to-one for yourself. But you have the chance to think about how you can use the principle for yourself. How can you combine one of your playful strengths with a small detail?
I wish you a lot of fun and success on the court.