"Carlos alcaraz voices discomfort over ongoing comparisons to rafael nadal, prefers not to discuss the topic."

Thursday, 21 September 2023 at 07:00

Spain’s young tennis sensation Carlos Alcaraz has admitted that constant comparison with legendary Rafael Nadal is annoying.

The 20-year-old became the talk of the town after winning Wimbledon earlier this year with a memorable win over the current world number one Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in a five-set thrilling final with a score of 1–6, 7–6(8–6), 6–1, 3–6, 6–4.

Alcaraz has often been compared with his fellow countryman Nadal as he also came through his academy.

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During a Q&A session with the fans, the current world number two admitted that it is becoming annoying to be compared with such a legendary player. "It's not annoying, but I would say the comparison with Rafa [is annoying]," he said.

Nadal is often termed as one of the greatest players of all time, having won 22 Grand Slam titles. Out of those, 14 came while playing at the French Open which is why he is also called the ‘King of Clay’.

On the other hand, Alcaraz has just started his career and has only won two Grand Slams.

His joy after winning Wimbledon earlier this year was short-lived as he suffered back-to-back poor results.

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First, he was knocked out of The National Bank Canadian Open after losing to America’s Tommy Paul in the quarterfinal with a score of 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.

After that, Alcaraz lost the final of the Cincinnati Open (Western & Southern Open) to Djokovic with a score of 5-7, 7-6, 7-6.

In the US Open, the Murcia-born was defending his title but was knocked out after losing the semifinal to world number three Russia’s Daniil Medvedev with a score of 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.

Despite those results, Alcaraz will be pretty satisfied with his overall performance this year where he played in the semifinal or beyond in all the three Grand Slams he participated in.

Carlos Alcaraz

@carlosalcaraz

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Me hacía mucha ilusión jugar por 🇪🇸 la Davis en Valencia, pero tengo que escuchar a mi cuerpo después de una gira muy larga. Necesito parar y descansar, físicamente y mentalmente. El calendario es muy exigente, todavía queda mucha temporada, y ahora me toca recargar fuerzas.

3:25 PM · Sep 9, 2023

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Azeem Siddiqui

Azeem Siddiqui is a seasoned sports journalist and data analyst with a strong background in both digital media and live sports production.

He began his journalism career working with partners of The New York Times and has since contributed to several leading international sports publications, including Fox Sports Asia, Calciomercato, and GiveMeSport. Since 2023, Azeem has been part of the TennisUpToDate team, where he has played a key role in sustaining the platform’s growth and ensuring tennis fans receive timely and reliable coverage of the sport’s biggest stories.

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