One more, making it five. A few weeks ago Carlos Alcaraz opened up on Netflix in a documentary called 'My Way' about his journey to become the best in history. Work is not the only important thing in life, he proclaimed, like many others of his generation. It's a very human claim: he wants to ascend to the tennis Olympus while enjoying his mother's marineras and going to Ibiza for a few days with his friends. But many did not understand. The argument against him can be summarized with a reflection from Carlos Moyà: "It's a viable option if you want to win Grand Slams in the short term, but in the long term, it's more complicated because this is a marathon." No one knows what will happen by 2034, 2036, or 2038, but for now, the only certainty is that Alcaraz's work method is effective. One more, making it five.
At his age, none of the greats in history had won more 'major' titles, and only a couple showed similar numbers. One of them, in fact, had exactly the same numbers. But exactly, exactly.
Can you imagine who? After winning four Roland Garros titles, Rafa Nadal triumphed at Wimbledon 2008, thus claiming his fifth Grand Slam at 22 years old, one month, and three days. This Sunday, Alcaraz, was exactly the same age: 22 years old, one month, and three days. The coincidence unites them, among many other things, and demonstrates that both are prodigies. It's worth reviewing the legends who are now behind on the Grand Slam list: Manolo Santana, Guillermo Vilas, and Jim Courier have four; Gustavo Kuerten, Andy Murray, and Stan Wawrinka have three. It's worth reviewing the age at which other sports legends were at this stage.
Novak Djokovic, for example, was 24 years, eight months, and seven days old when he won the 2012 Australian Open and added his fifth trophy to the shelf. Roger Federer was also 24 years old, albeit one month and three days old when he won his fifth Grand Slam, the 2005 US Open. There is only one case similar to that of Alcaraz and Nadal: Bjorn Borg, who celebrated his 'fifth' at 22 years and five days. Pete Sampras, Boris Becker, and Mats Wilander, also examples of precocity, achieved it at 23, while others had to wait much longer, like Jimmy Connors or Ivan Lendl, until 26, or Andre Agassi, until 29.
For now, Alcaraz's way is successful, there is no doubt, and it suggests a future of dominance, what is missing. While he seems unbeatable on clay, just like on grass, he still has the challenge of conquering hard courts as a pending task to finally assert his superiority. Ahead of Jannik Sinner after defeating him in their last five encounters, including three finals - the latest Masters 1000 in Beijing and Rome, and this Roland Garros - it's an anomaly that he is so far behind in the ATP ranking.
Despite his triumph in Paris and the three-month suspension that halted the Italian, Alcaraz still trails by 2,030 points and has ahead of him, next month, the defense of Wimbledon. Only if he also retains the crown and continues the streak can he consider an assault on the number one spot around the US Open. That's what lies ahead considering his performance in Grand Slams. One more, making it five.