The end of a chapter: Juan Carlos Ferrero unfollows Carlos Alcaraz on Instagram

Carlos Alcaraz has recently become the youngest player to achieve the career Grand Slam, taking down Novak Djokovic to win the Australian Open in remarkable fashion. However, there was a familiar member missing from his box missing out on this triumphant moment.

Back in December, the surprising news was announced that the world number one and Ferrero would be splitting up, ending a long term relationship which boasted a huge amount of success. There were a whole heap of questions and concerns around whether Alcaraz would be able to compete at the same level while achieving the success he was targeting, with these rumours being shut down with his first event of 2026.

He has started the season brilliantly, coping fine under the guidance of Samuel Lopez who took command when Ferrero left.

It had been said that the relationship between Alcaraz and Ferrero had remained positive, with the two going out on good terms. Despite this, Ferrero is looking to move on from this chapter of his life as quickly as possible, putting to bed his time coaching his fellow Spanish compatriot.

He has recently unfollowed Alcaraz on Instagram, along with a large amount of his team. He still follows Lopez and Albert Molina, but everyone else ranging from fitness to physio coaches have been unfollowed, specifically Alcaraz.

On the other side, Alcaraz is still following his old mentor, with him still vastly grateful for all the help he has got from him in these past years.

There could be many reasons for this unfollow. Ferrero for now has put his tennis career to bed focusing on a completely different career path - golf. He is collaborating with young Spanish golfer Ángel Ayora, being his mental coach while leaving the technical stuff to his other coaches.

It is a completely different realm to what the former Roland Garros champion had experienced in the past, but from his experience coaching Alcaraz and immersing himself in tennis as a player and coach.

Along with that, many people have speculated that it could be because he was not mentioned by Alcaraz in his Australian Open willing speech, opting not to recognise him as he thanked his team who were with him. Others believe that is just brought him too much pain watching his former prodigy continue to be successful without him, looking on at that he missed or what he could still be a part of as the 22-year-old created history Down Under.

Alcaraz will continue on his merry way as he looks to prolong this great form into 2026. He was scheduled to compete in the ABN AMRO Open but wisely withdrew ahead of the event in Rotterdam. He will not defend his title, instead spending some time to recover from his success in Melbourne ahead of the Qatar Open from February 16-22.