Is Carlos Alcaraz the nicest man in tennis? His childhood coaches, fans and the 79 -year -old widow who collapsed in one of his games certainly think.
The Spaniard, 22, who is a sequence of victories at 24 games, has spent spectators and players of the last fortnight – and not only with his tennis skills.
The five -time Grand Chelem champion won hearts and matches in Wimbledon, where he reached the final for the third consecutive year, after beating American player Taylor Fritz in four sets on Friday.
Kiko Navarro, former coach of Alcaraz in his hometown of El Palmar, a village in Murcia, is not surprised by good manners or the popularity of the star. “His happiness in his face, which he spreads to the spectators, it was the same thing when he was a child,” he said.
“He has always been a humble person. As he was little, when we were going to play, people looked at us and saw that he was the best. And I liked to think that one day he became a tennis player, he would keep this humility, this proximity he has with people – and that is why he won all the public.”
The acts of Alcaraz kindness in Wimbledon have been abundant and well documented, often reflecting carefully in clips the size of a bite which become viral on social networks. They include the delivery of his shirt signed to the son of his Italian opponent Fabio Fognini, Federico, who is a big fan, and who makes time to say hello to the four -year -old son of the Spanish retirement player Fliciano López, who was in SW19 for the double invitation.
Alcaraz also seemed to be the first person to spot Doryth Lewis, 79, fighting in the heat at the fifth hour of his epic with five sets against Fognini. Alcaraz rushed to the referee to stop the game before picking up his own bottles of water and going to her help when she passed out. This week, the retired bank worker said she was “really grateful” for her actions: “I am his number one fan and I hope he raises the trophy on Sunday.”
Alcaraz will face Novak Djokovic or the World No. 1, Jannik Sinner, Sunday before US Open next month, where he will also play mixed doubles with Briton 1, Emma Raducanu, who, according to him, was going to “be the boss”.
Navarro said Alcaraz’s good deeds were not for cameras or sponsorship agreements, of which he has a lot. “It shows that he is a very sensitive person,” he said. “He likes this kind of gestures.
“These are things that come from the heart, that are not things he does to earn people or brands. He has all his contracts, everything is perfect, but the truth is that he knows how to help people. He has his base here in Murcia, Fundación Alcaraz, to help the poorest children, and he likes, he likes to help people. ”
The consensus was the same among the tennis initiates who said this week that what you saw was what you got with Alcaraz, which cannot be said for all players.
Alcaraz often speaks generously about his opponents after having defeated them in court. On Tuesday, he described the former British n ° 1 Cameron Norrie as “an incredible guy”, adding: “No one works stronger than him and it’s nice to see him fight for great things.”
He also had only warm words to say about the qualifier Oliver Tarvet, which he beat in straight sets, predicting that the 21 -year -old British player could continue to achieve great things. He then commented an Instagram post from Tarvet, saying: “Great Run Man, continues.”
Carlos Santos, who resulted in Alcaraz from five to 12 years old, said that he had always been polite. “He has always been a nice boy. He was magic. He was still smiling. He was a special boy. When Carlos was only 10 years old, we traveled in Europe together, and he never caused problems at the hotel or in matches. He is different,” he recalls.
After promoting the newsletter
His experience echoed that of Navarro, who said that he had never seen Alcaraz refuse a fan a photograph or an autograph. And it was no different in Wimbledon on Friday morning. “I feel really good,” said a 13 -year -old McCallum Zoe, grabbing a signed tennis ball that Alcaraz had just given him. “He’s just very good in tennis,” she said in response to the reason she was a big fan.
The schoolgirl and his father, Gavin McCallum, were one of the hundreds of spectators who had aligned themselves to watch Alcaraz train in court 16 at 11 a.m. before the shock of the Spanish semi-final against Fritz.
In addition to distributing bullets to his youngest admirers at the end of his session, Alcaraz patiently greeted and smiled at the hordes who took photos of him and shouted: “Vamos Carlos! We hope you win!”
McCallum, 50, who had traveled from Glasgow, said: “It’s the new generation. Everyone loved Rafa [Rafael Nadal] But he will be the new Spanish King of Tennis. He has a very good charisma. He is preparing for the semi-final and gave my daughter a signed tennis ball. He is a man of the people. He really seems earth to earth; He is not too in place and he takes the time to do things with fans, which is great. He didn’t have to do it but he did it.
“He is simply incredibly entertaining,” said Sophie Moore, 17, who was also waiting to have an overview of the man of the moment. “And very beautiful,” interrupted her friend Lola Moffatt, 16. “Beautiful, young and good in tennis,” she added.
Students, who hope to have successful tennis careers themselves, said he was the most popular player among their peers. “He is very friendly and humble, compared to other players who are quite shameless,” said Moore.
This is why Navarro thinks that Alcaraz could be one of the nicest players in sport. “Because in tennis, unfortunately, there are many – I’m not going to say the names – but they are not very kind to people. It seems that, in the end, in tennis, the public face is also important for brands and sponsors. This is why Carlos, as well as his tennis, his way of being such good contracts, with all the best brands in the world.
“But for me, what is important is how Carlitos is, and if Carlitos is nice, that is enough for me.”
