Monday after victory over Novak Djokovic to retain the title at Wimbledon, weeks after conquering Roland Garros. Around half past nine in the morning. An exhausted Carlos Alcaraz closed the circle of Wimbledon 2024 with his final promises before flying home. The Murcian immediately became active at the All England Club. Serves Mundo Deportivo in the players area.
Football, dinner of champions. A little sleep deprived?
I fell asleep a bit. At dinner, in the middle of London, a longer journey, I got home late at night and between one thing and another I had to sleep late. But as I always say, it’s a blessed problem.
What is more important, winning the Euro Cup or chaining Roland Garros and Wimbledon?
It’s complicated to say. The Eurocup is every four years and that makes it very complicated. Roland Garros and Wimbledon are annual, but it’s also complicated because so few achieve it. Let’s leave things on par, things equally.
Who will we give the Ballon d’Or to, Lamine Yamal or Carlos Alcaraz?
Me, the Ballon d’Or and him, the Ballon d’Or.
He has four Grand Slams, he won two in a row. And the only thing missing is the Australian Open. Will the four of them go for victory in the same year? What could that be?
This will be the top of the top.
According to Djokovic, versatile and very complete. Are you considering it? Even the ‘Big 3’ couldn’t do it
We have two in a row of four, we have reached half. But right now it’s not our goal to win all four. Obviously, every Grand Slam we go to we try to win, but we try not to put pressure on ourselves to achieve it. There will be time to focus on that, but right now it’s not what we’re thinking about. This is a clear goal that no one or only one or two (Don Budge and Rod Laver) has achieved in the entire history of tennis, so it is something that makes us happy that our name is in that data.
All four in the same year?
Of course, winning it the same year would be a goal and a dream.
The next goal is the Paris Olympic Games. Double medal option.
Let’s not go for a gold, but for the same with Rafa.
Are you in touch with Rafa Nadal about the double issue?
Not much. He also has his things, we have ours. We’ve only talked a little bit, but when we’re actually at the Games, we’ll talk more about these doubles and, more importantly, how we’re going to do it.
Will you let him reign? Are you afraid of being nervous?
I’m not nervous now. Certainly when the occasion approaches I am. And yes, obviously, he has experienced it, he knows what it’s like to play in the Olympics, to win gold in singles and doubles. I’m new, I’m just a newbie here, so I have to shut up and just listen to him.
Who can you take a selfie with in the Olympic Village?
Something I never thought of. I’m so embarrassed. I do not know. I got to go to the Olympic Village and see all the athletes to say ‘oh, I want a photo with him’.
Will you endure? You will also be one of the targets of other athletes.
Yes Yes. For me, it was crazy to live that experience, to be in the Olympic Village, and I have a lot of respect for all the athletes who qualified and represented Spain at the Games. So whoever wants to have a photo with me, which I believe is Rafa, I will be more than happy.
What can you see in the Games?
I like to watch golf and basketball. Basketball is a bit far from me, it’s in Lille; I was told that golf is adjacent, so I would like to see those two disciplines.
What do you miss when you are away from home?
Being calm at home, with my people. With nothing much to do because at home I enjoy not doing fancy things, but rather the simplest and most natural things that define me and what I enjoy the most. This is what I miss the most. Being calm at home with my family and friends.
How do you deal with jealousy, comparison, between siblings? You have fame and money.
I think they enjoy seeing me. My successes are felt by them. They support me every day. They consider me an older brother, not as a famous tennis player who became number one or won Grand Slams, but as an older brother who I should take care of them and Álvaro considers me as a younger brother just like me. . And that’s nice and that’s what I like about them, that they don’t see me as a tennis player but as a normal person and the little brother.
Does the bed need to be made?
When I enter my house, I am under my parents’ rules. So it doesn’t matter if he has won two or fifteen Grand Slams. They’re in charge and I think that’s what’s good too. That when I enter the house I forget about the tennis part and I’m the same person as before.
Have an open bar with friends?
It works for me to pay, they always tell me that it’s not necessary, that no, that they can, but in the end I get a gesture of paying for their dinner. Not always, but occasionally.
Is life still the same for them?
Everyone has their own use. Among my group of friends I am very happy, not only for them but for the work they are doing and their efforts to get their own resources. I don’t know what people my age are doing in Spain, I try to help them as much as possible, as much as I can, but they are always there. A lot of times they can’t go because of that, because they’re working.
He talked about improving his sleeping and eating habits. Which resignation means the most to you?
I’m still struggling with some things I’m trying to change. The issue of rest, for example, trying to go to bed early to get my hours of sleep and rest properly. And the phone issue, try to get rid of it or use it less time. The topic of food, of course. Also introduce reading a little, which I don’t like either, but I know it’s good for me. These are things that, little by little, I am trying to improve, but it is difficult for me. Yes, they cost me.
Why did you eliminate gluten?
I feel better now. I took a test to see what was good for me and what was bad for me and it turned out gluten was not for me, but I didn’t feel it. Ultimately, this is not intolerance. It’s simple if I want to give that extra one or two percent by being better physically and feeling better on the court I have to get rid of it.
He is leaving London. Have you normalized success?
I still feel the nerves as if it was the first time I experienced it. It’s still beautiful and special. I don’t think I’ll ever lose hope of jumping back onto center court, of playing in another Wimbledon final again, and that would be great. Hopefully more finals and more times in the center. Right now I continue to experience everything as if it were the first time. The same illusion. And nerves.
Source: La Verdad
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