Andy Roddick reveals what separates Carlos Alcaraz from Djokovic, Nadal and Federer at 21
Former world No 1 Andy Roddick has asserted that Carlos Alcaraz “didn’t need to prove anything” after the Spaniard’s Monte Carlo Masters title win.
Alcaraz earned a 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over 23-year-old Italian Lorenzo Musetti in the championship match in Monte Carlo to secure his maiden crown at the prestigious clay tournament.
The 21-year-old has now won 18 ATP singles titles and six Masters 1000 titles, while his triumph has lifted him above Alexander Zverev into the world No 2 position.
Speaking on the Tennis Channel Live podcast, Roddick addressed the narrative about Alcaraz’s inconsistent form heading into Monte Carlo.
“I like how all we are talking about this year is how Carlos has struggled a little bit,” said the American.
“Oh, by the way, he is number one in the race, and I understand Jannik Sinner has been suspended. I am just saying, we are now judging this kid against his own massive shadow.
“I don’t think anyone on earth doubts that, even if he plays badly for two or three weeks, that he can’t catch form very quickly in a match or two and flip the script and win a Masters 1000 title.
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“We didn’t need him to prove anything to us this week, but he just showed again, bet against me at your own risk.”
The 2003 US Open champion then explained how Alcaraz’s completeness as a player brings challenges that even Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer did not face at the same age.
“I mean, the problem with being able to hit every single shot on earth is that, sometimes, you try to hit every single shot on earth,” Roddick continued.
“With Rafa at an early age — he (Alcaraz) always begs the comparison to the Big Three — Rafa at a very early age didn’t have the amount of options that Carlos Alcaraz has at 21 years old.
“That doesn’t mean that Rafa didn’t develop them later; he certainly did, but his lock, stock game when he was 20, 21 years old was, ‘I’m gonna be a pain in the butt, I’m gonna hit that forehand to your backhand, and I’m gonna go into super grind mode.’
“Novak had a set play, Roger had a set play. He (Alcaraz) has all of these options. Learning when and how to disperse them is an ongoing process.
“When we struggle, I almost feel like it’s a matter of indecision on which type of Carlos to be that day, when knuckleheads like me only had one option.”
Alcaraz will aim to continue his clay-court run at the Barcelona Open, where he is a two-time former champion.
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