Juan Carlos Ferrero was overcome by emotions when his protege Carlos Alcaraz won the Wimbledon title. In a mesmerizing display of skill, the young Spaniard defeated the reigning champion, Novak Djokovic. The match was drawn out for 5 sets and in the end, young Carlos won it 1-6, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4.
This is Alcaraz’s second Grand Slam title. It is remarkable because it was just his fourth tournament on grass. But his playing style had traces of the Prince of Wimbledon, Roger Federer himself.
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It was intentional, as Ferrero revealed in an interview with Eurosport. In order to defeat the leading Grand Slam title holder Djokovic, they needed something special. Former world number one, Ferrero revealed that Alcaraz incorporated elements of Roger Federer and Andy Murray into his style of play.
When asked how Carlos Alcaraz adapted to playing on grass so quickly, he said, “It’s very difficult to say, I think he takes things on board very quickly, and we’ve also seen a lot of videos of players that move very quickly here.”
“So, we copied a little of Murray, Roger, and Novak, and he tries to copy a little bit the same. In the end, it wasn’t easy, but we did it,” added Ferrero. Ferrero also disclosed that they realized Carlos had to play against Djokovic, the way he did against Daniil Medvedev. The reason given was that they both have a similar playing style.
“Medvedev is on the baseline all the time and Carlos likes to use the slice to bring the opponent to the net. That was something we needed to do against Novak. It was one of the keys to break his rhythm,” he said.
Ferrero’s comments have fueled the ‘Spygate’ once more
In the lead-up to the highly anticipated final clash, there were rumors of spying. Apparently, Carlos Alcaraz’s father had filmed the 7 time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic during practice.
Since the epic win and Ferrero’s comments, Djokovic’s request for more privacy during practice makes more sense. Since the news of the ‘Spygate’ broke out, fans were heavily invested. “That’s the situation we are all in,” Djokovic had said. “The circumstances are such that we don’t have privacy in training, although sometimes I would like to have more privacy.”
Carlos Alcaraz was asked if his dad was filming Novak Djokovic’s training session:
“Probably. My father is a huge fan of tennis. He doesn’t only watch my matches… he watches practice from everyone. To be able to watch Djokovic in real-life, probably it’s true.” pic.twitter.com/uTXnlMwFmV
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) July 12, 2023
Alcaraz was asked to verify and he said they were probably true. Although he did not think it would be an advantage to him since there was video footage available everywhere. Alcaraz had an incredible outing at SW19 this year. With the US Open just around the corner, the young world number one will be looking to carry this momentum forward.