PARIS — Carlos Alcaraz says the end of the year is The youngest tennis player in the world It was an “amazing achievement” and a reward for his hard work.
The Spaniard will turn 19 years and 214 days on Dec. 5, the year-end ranking date in 2022, when he will succeed Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt, who was 20 years and 275 days in 2001.
Alcaraz will surely end up in No. 1 when Casper Rudd beats Tyler Fritz on Tuesday, ensuring Rafael Nadal will not be able to reach the final four at the ATP Finals in Turin. The older Spaniard will need to win games to end the season as world number one.
Alcaraz was ranked No. 32 in the world at the start of the year and has made his biggest improvement in the 50-year ranking to top the list.he is Unable to play in Torino due to an abdominal injury.
Since Andy Roddick in 2003, he became the first player outside of the big four of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal The top player on the final ranking list.
“It means a lot to me. I mean, it’s an amazing feeling for me to get this world number one trophy and be a part of tennis history with so many legends,” Alcaraz told a news conference on Wednesday. said.
“It’s a fantastic achievement. I mean, all the hard work will pay off.
“Yeah, it’s incredible for me to lift this trophy today.”
Finishing the year with the youngest ever No. 1 is just the latest milestone for the humble, muscular star from the Murcia town of El Palmar.
Alcaraz learned the game at the tennis school run by his father.
Alcaraz won the Giants in Madrid in May when he became the only man to beat both Nadal and Djokovic in the same clay-court event.
When he broke into the world’s top five in July, he was the youngest man since 2005.
His coach, former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero, believes Alcaraz is capable of winning 30 Grand Slam titles if he stays fit. Nadal holds the record with 22.
(function(d, s, id) {
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s);
js.id = id;
js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.5”;
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));