“What do they want?” David Ferrer slams fans on social media for putting pressure on Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz has been heavily criticized for not taking advantage of Jannik Sinner's suspension by winning titles.
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Carlos Alcaraz, David Ferrer (Image via X/The Tennis Letter, Tennis Channel)
Carlos Alcaraz has enjoyed a successful clay season which began earlier this month. He has won one title and finished as runners-up in the second. Yet, fans on social media are demanding more titles and wins from the Spaniard. Spain’s Davis Cup captain, David Ferrer, has come to his defense after this recent criticism.
The young Spaniard has been under huge scrutiny this season. After winning the Rotterdam Open, the Spaniard experienced a a bit of struggle with form on the court. That led him to exit the Qatar Open in the quarter-finals and the semi-finals of the Indian Wells. He then went on to lose to David Goffin in the second round of the Miami Open.
However, the 21-year-old did well to bounce back at the Monte Carlo, where he claimed his first ATP Masters 1000 title after a year. He continued with the new form at the Barcelona Open, but failed to win the title after losing to Holger Rune in the final. Despite the Spaniard getting injured during the match, he has been criticized for his loss.
David Ferrer revealed that fans on social media must understand that the Alcaraz is just 21 and will have to go through some tough stages on his career. He added that Alcaraz is a special player.
Today, with social media, players are very vulnerable, and they are still very young. It’s not the same to criticize him or criticize me at 43. When I was his age, I didn’t have the maturity that I have now. As mature as Carlos is, he’s still very young, so it’s normal that it affects him a little. What do they want? For him to win every tournament? Carlos is a player at Rafael’s level. So let’s just enjoy him. He’s a special player, at a very high level. The same thing happened with Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer.
David Ferrer said via TNT Sports
Alcaraz might not be in his best form, but he’s surely playing great tennis on the court. The only problem he has this season is that he hasn’t been consistent with his performance in tournaments.
Carlos Alcaraz handed a good draw at the Madrid Open despite not yet certain to play
Alcaraz’s hopes of playing at the Madrid Open still hang in the balance after sustaining an injury at the Barcelona Open final. The Spaniard will undergo an MRI scan, which will ascertain whether he will feature at the ATP 1000 Masters event or take extra caution by skipping it and then returning to the tour in Rome.
However, the Madrid Open released its draw for the tournament. Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic are in the same half of the draw, which means they are likely to face one another in the semi-finals. Nonetheless, Alcaraz earned a first-round bye, so he will open his campaign in Madrid in the second round against either Yoshihito Nishioka or Zizou Bergs.
If Alcaraz does win his second-round match, his potential third-round opponent is Jiri Lehecka, who reached the semi-finals last year. A win in the third round will make him likely to face Tomas Machac or Grigor Dimitrov in the Round of 16.
David Ferrer on Rafael Nadal’s farewell ceremony at the 2024 Davis Cup Finals
Rafael Nadal‘s career came to an end last year at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga. The former World No.1 lost to Botic Van de Zandschulp in the opening match, which later made Spain crash out of the tournament. The 22-time Grand Slam champion was given a farewell ceremony after the tie. But David Ferrer believes that ITF failed to give the Spaniard a better tribute after his accomplishments in the sport.
When you see how Rafa handled it, that in the end he was the protagonist, it also calms you down. I felt sorry, because he’s a friend of mine and I love him very much. That he lost and then that there wasn’t a better tribute from the ITF saddened me, but his career wasn’t going to change no matter what happened that weekend.
David Ferrer said
Nonetheless, the French Open is set to honor Nadal at the 2025 Roland Garros. The organizers revealed that the planned, and well-deserved tribute, will be held at the iconic Philippe-Chatrier court on May 25.
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