Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal on Top of the World After Spain’s World Cup Victory Over Argentina

Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal on Top of the World After Spain’s World Cup Victory Over Argentina

Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz celebrated Spain's World Cup win over Argentina (Image via ATP Tour, X/Morgan J. Freeman, The Tennis Letter, Instagram/Rafael Nadal)

Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal‘s happiness knows no bounds. And why wouldn’t it be? Because on Sunday (July 19), Spain beat defending champion Argentina 1-0 to win the World Cup.

While the 22-time Grand Slam champion was with his whole family watching the match from Mallorca, Alcaraz, who is set to make his comeback at the Cincinnati Masters, watched his countrymen taste the glory from the stands of the New York Jersey Stadium.

The match was a one-sided affair with Spain led by Rodri, even though one goal in extra time from Ferran Torres may give a different picture. Argentina finished with just one shot on target and attempted just three shots at Spain’s goal, while the champions had 20 attempts.

Alcaraz and actress Jung Ho-yeon presented the FIFA World Cup trophy before the match. And during the match, he was a bundle of emotions. At one point, he was so engrossed in celebration that he had no idea that his phone had fallen from his hands.

Alcaraz has become a meme thanks to his reaction to a disallowed goal. He jumped in joy when he thought Spain had scored a goal, only to realize seconds later that it was disallowed due to a foul.

Djokovic also watched the match from the stadium, and so did Rafael Jodar, the 19-year-old from Spain, also one of the contenders to join Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner to form another Big 3 of tennis.

The 23-year-old was last seen in action at the Barcelona Open in April, as a wrist injury not only forced him to end his campaign but also ruled him out of other clay-court events, including the French Open and the grass swing. Had Alcaraz played in Paris, he would’ve chased a hat-trick of the clay-court Major.

At Wimbledon, he featured in the finals in the previous three seasons, winning in 2023 and 2024 by defeating Novak Djokovic both times. But his arch-rival Sinner dashed his hopes of a hat-trick last year and defended his title this year.

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Adriano Panatta says men’s tennis is not an open contest without Carlos Alcaraz

When Carlos Alcaraz was nursing his wrist injury, Jannik Sinner was taking home titles one after the other. After completing the Sunshine Double, the Italian beat the Spaniard in the Monte Carlo final before winning the remaining two Masters 1000s on clay.

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/CARLOS ALCARAZ NEWS)

Although Sinner suffered disappointment at the French Open, he defended his title at Wimbledon with a four-set win over Alexander Zverev. Adriano Panatta said tennis needs the seven-time Grand Slam champion to challenge the dominance of Sinner.

I am waiting for him, sincerely convinced that only with the two of them paired up again, Sinner on one side, Alcaraz on the other, will tennis once again become an open contest, the duel everyone desires. Right now, it isn’t, and it couldn’t be. By winning his second Wimbledon, Sinner has shown he is simply too strong for everyone.

Adriano Panatta told Corriere della Serra

Alcaraz has already played three finals this year. Before his defeat to Sinner in Monte Carlo, he clinched the Australian Open and the Qatar Open.

He fended off Zverev, who had meanwhile won in Paris and climbed to number two in the rankings, handing the German his tenth consecutive defeat. Sport, not just tennis, needs fierce rivalries to be as compelling as possible.

Adriano Panatta added

Alcaraz withdrew from the Canadian Open, but Sinner is scheduled to play in Montreal. He has a winning streak of 34 matches in the Masters 1000s. If he wins in Montreal, Cincinnati, Shanghai, and Paris, he will become the first man in history to complete the Golden Masters.

Also read: Iga Swiatek Told She’s ‘Not Good Enough’ by Boris Becker After Wimbledon Upset: “Something Needs to Change Dramatically”