Coaching great highlights one thing he would change about Carlos Alcaraz

Tennis News

Ewan West
October 21, 2023

Rick Macci has declared that “we’ve never seen anything like Carlos Alcaraz from A to Z” and hailed the Spanish star’s courageous and adventurous approach.

The legendary tennis coach revealed he would change “one little thing” about Alcaraz, though, and highlighted the fact that “his service could be better.”

Alcaraz has won six titles – including a maiden Wimbledon victory and two ATP Masters 1000 crowns – during a superb 2023 campaign to date. The two-time Grand Slam winner holds an excellent 63-9 (87.5%) record this year, despite enduring a more challenging period since his Wimbledon triumph.

The 20-year-old missed the first month of the year, including the season’s opening major in Melbourne, due to a hamstring injury. He returned in February to play his first event at the Argentina Open ATP 250 tournament in Buenos Aires – where he claimed the title.

The world No 2 was defeated by Grigor Dimitrov in the last 16 of the Shanghai Masters earlier this month in his last tournament. The Murcian has withdrawn from next week’s Swiss Indoors in Basel due to a left foot injury and muscle fatigue to his lower back.

In an interview with Tennis Infinity, Macci lauded the complete game Alcaraz possesses and discussed the value of his aggressive and fearless mindset.

“I’ve been wrong a few times, but I’ve been right a lot. But with this Alcaraz guy, we’ve never seen anything like this from A to Z. Mentally, physically, technically, every box is checked,” assessed the American.

“There’s one little thing I would change, his service could be better, because the percentage is not what it could be, but I don’t want to be picky. He is very good mentally.

“Everyone needs to understand, it’s not his turbo speed. He has creativity, but probably no one has made more mistakes in his life than Carlos Alcaraz and that is why he earns more than anyone at 20 years old on the professional circuit.

“And it is a great lesson for any coach. You can’t be afraid to fail, because the more you fail, the more successful you will be. And you need to gather courage and try your shots at a young age.

“So that’s great teaching at a young age because he’s very adventurous because he thinks he can do it, where everyone else could play a little bit bigger percentage.”

Macci has worked with five players who achieved the world No 1 ranking in their careers: Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova, Jennifer Capriati and Andy Roddick. The 68-year-old also coached major champions Mary Pierce, Anastasia Myskina and Sofia Kenin.

Carlos Alcaraz Rick Macci