“The pressure is on Alcaraz, without Ferrero by his side, to prove something" - Becker hints at Alcaraz partnering up with Nadal in the future

Carlos Alcaraz is set to compete in his first competition without Juan Carlos Ferrero by his side. It is a huge blow, and does not help much that it is the Australian Open that he is kicking his year off with. The Spaniard has put himself under immense pressure to win the event, but Boris Becker also believed that he is under pressure to prove himself without Ferrero.

The pair split back in December, and the announcement was met by a whole host of speculation and drama. Rumours started th swirl around of the reasons for their split while tennis pundits and fans all had their say on the bug talking point of the off-season.

While they both remain on good terms, Ferrero will not be taking any more part in coaching the current world number one, with Alcaraz set to go his own way for the first time in his career. He has Samuel Lopez as his right hand man for the time being, not straying away from his prior set up as he looks to navigate this tricky period without the former Roland Garros champion.

In his time spent with Ferrero, Alcaraz has comfortably been recognised as one of the best players in the world. He has scooped up six Grand Slams, eight Masters 1000 titles, overall 24 ATP titles and been number one for a total of 54 weeks.

He is very close to competing the career Grand Slam, having won a brace of the other three titles. “Carlos is good enough to win in Melbourne this year, absolutely," Becker confidently stated in an interview to AS and Eurosport.

He even put him above his on court rival Jannik Sinner, who had been his closest competitor these prior few years. “For me, he is the most talented player in the world. I think he is more talented than Sinner, than [Alexander] Zverev. He had a fantastic 2025. Obviously, he was pushed very hard by Sinner. Right now, I rate them as equals. But you can see it especially in Melbourne: Sinner has won it twice and Alcaraz hasn’t yet."

Becker does not deny that Alcaraz is good enough to win in Melbourne, but the pressure will be on without Ferrero to guide him through. This is why he opted with another champion. “The pressure is on Alcaraz, without Ferrero by his side, to prove something," he said. "Is he good enough? Yes. Is he talented enough? Yes. Let’s talk in two weeks and see if we have a new champion in Melbourne. Today, on paper, I would say Sinner is the favourite.”

“The pressure is on Carlos, as I said. Ferrero is a great coach. Their partnership was excellent,” he commented. “I don’t think we’ll see any differences in Melbourne; he wants to show that he can win without Ferrero."

The former world number one was intrigued to see how the Alcaraz-Lopez partnership would hold up, but would go on to hint at Alcaraz taking the next step and getting in a past superstar into the hot seat.

“But in March or April, I wouldn’t be surprised if he had a super coach by his side," he admitted, before saying who the perfect one would be. "The dream for everyone would be [Rafael] Nadal, myself included. Ferrero knows how to win as a coach and a player, and that should not be underestimated by anyone.”

Alcaraz will kick his Australian Open off under the lights on the opening day of action on Rod Laver Arena, with Aussie hopeful Adam Walton looking to cause a seismic upset. Alcaraz has never made it past the quarter-finals in this specific event, and will need to break new ground if he is to go on and taste glory.