Tennis ‘making too much’ of Carlos Alcaraz, claims influential figure
Tennis is making “a bit too much” of Carlos Alcaraz and should wait to take advantage of his star power, according to influential former player Ion Tiriac.
Alcaraz has set the tennis world alight ever since he burst onto the scene in 2021, and has now become one of the biggest stars in the game.
The 21-year-old became the youngest No 1 in ATP history in September 2022 and has already spent 36 weeks as the world No 1 in total.
He also already has four Grand Slam titles to his name, with triumphs at the 2022 US Open and 2023 Wimbledon followed by further French Open and Wimbledon victories this year.
With Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Roger Federer all retired, Rafael Nadal’s retirement imminent, and Novak Djokovic now 37, Alcaraz is leading a new generation of stars that includes Jannik Sinner, Iga Swiatek, and Coco Gauff among others.
But Tiriac, a former player, agent, and tournament owner, believes that it would be best for tennis to wait until Alcaraz is well and truly into the prime of his career to “reap” the financial benefits of his star power.
“He’s a talented player, he’s sensational, he has incredible leg speed and power,” said the Romanian, speaking to We Love Tennis.
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“But I think we’re making a bit too much of him, that we already want to reap the economic benefits when we’re only at the beginning of his career.
“We have to be much more patient, leave him alone because the dollar we earn today is nothing compared to what we can “earn” in a few years.”
Alcaraz is undoubtedly a box-office draw, attracting huge attention wherever he goes – and a huge amount of fan support at most tournaments.
More often than not he is already front and centre of tournament branding, and is usually highlighted as the marquee signing for non-Grand Slam and Masters 1000 events he plays, such as the Queen’s Club Championships and Rio Open.
The Spaniard last played at the Olympic Games in Paris, where he just missed out on the gold medal after a tight loss to Novak Djokovic in the gold medal match.
However, the world No 3 will likely go into the US Open as the favourite, having won the past two major tournaments – and being a former champion in New York.
Before that, he is in Cincinnati Open action this week, looking to claim his first title at the event after a loss to Djokovic in the final a year ago.
