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Journalism of Courage
With six grand slam titles, 22-year-old world number Carlos Alcaraz is the youngest man in tennis history to win multiple majors titles on hard, clay and grass courts. Since winning the 2022 US Open, the Spaniard has won the Wimbledon and the French Open twice apart from winning his second US Open title this year beating Jannik Sinner. Alcaraz also remains unbeaten against 24-time grand slam winner Novak Djokovic in Grand Slam finals apart from unbeaten against Sinner in grand slam finals. 23-time major winner Serena Williams has shared how she always cheers Alcaraz and sees the possibility of Alcaraz breaking Djovokic’s record of 24 grand slam titles one day.
“Of course I know it (Spanish tennis) well — the Spanish have been at the top for a long time,” said Williams. “There’s Rafa [Nadal], of course, but there are many other wonderful tennis players. Alcaraz is doing incredible things. I’m a huge fan of Alcaraz. I always cheer him on. At this point, anything is possible. When (Roger) Federer started, no one thought he could surpass (Pete) Sampras, and he did. Then Rafa (Nadal) did the same, and then (Novak) Djokovic. Carlos is very young, he has great rivals, but of course it’s possible. Records are there to be broken.” Williams told reporters in a press conference during the 2025 Princess of Asturias Award in Spain on Friday.
Alcaraz had won his first grand slam title with a 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (7-1), 6-3 win over Casper Rudd and won his second grand slam title in the from of the Wimbledon in 2023, where he scored a 1-6, 7-6(6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 win over back-to-back-to-back defending champion Djokovic. Over the next two years, Alcaraz would win last year’s French Open title apart from winning the Wimbledon last year and the US Open and French open titles this year. This year, Alcaraz has a 24-2 record in Grand Slam matches with a loss against Djokovic in the Australian Open quarters and a loss against Sinner in the Wimbledon final being the only two losses in grand slams. The Spaniard has scored wins over Djokovic in both his Wimbledon title triumphs and the Serbian had shared how it is ‘quite frustrating’ to play against Alcaraz and Sinner. “The new reality is the way it is. I have to be satisfied with the top-5 spot in these circumstances. That’s how I see it. I know that I’m very self-critical in the sense that I know that I can always play better, and even when I was at my highest level, I felt like I could play better. I think that kind of mindset really helps because you feel like you always have to have a mindset of pursuing the best version of yourself. You might never catch it, but you still lean towards perfectionism, whatever that is. Jannik (Sinner) and Carlos (Alcaraz) are playing as close to perfection right now in the last year as they can be. To be honest, it’s quite frustrating to play them when they are playing at such a high level. However, at the same time, it’s great for our sport,” Djokovic had told the media last week.
