“I wish to be like her,” Carlos Alcaraz draws inspiration from Iga Swiatek following her record-breaking 2022 season
Follow Us
Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek - FirstSportz
Spaniard prodigy Carlos Alcaraz has been the standout performer of the year. It was an amazing year for him as he created history to become the youngest year-end World No 1. He also clinched his maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open and four ATP singles titles. He heaped praises on Iga Swiatek for her incredible performances as he aspires to maintain his top spot like the Polish player.
Swiatek climbed to the top spot after Ashleigh Barty announced her retirement at the start of the year. Since then, she has successfully claimed her top position along with being one of the consistent performers and winning two Grand Slam titles. She is the other player to cross 11,000 rankings points at the end of the year after Serena Williams.
The similarity between them is that they both are the champions of the 2022 US Open. The 19-year-old went on to reveal that he wishes to draw inspiration from Swiatek. He appreciated the impossible feat of the 21-year-old of holding the No 1 rank for more than 30 consecutive weeks and her 37-match winning streak until her loss at Wimbledon. He admitted that there is a fair probability of him losing the top spot in the coming year but hopes to retain the position for as long as he can.
During an interview, Carlos Alcaraz said that “I see her year has been incredible, she broke a record I think for the longest winning streak (this century). It’s amazing. I wish to be like her, to not lose the No. 1. But I think it’s almost impossible. I’m going to lose it but the point is to recover it and stay there at No. 1 as much as I can.“
Carlos Alcaraz is the highest-paid male athlete of the year
He was clearly the best player this season on the ATP Tour. He started the year by winning his maiden ATP 500 title and by the time he finished the season; he was a multiple Masters champion, a Grand Slam champion, and the youngest World No.1 at just 19 years of age. With his splendid performances, Carlos Alcaraz is often compared to his idol and World No 2, Rafael Nadal.
Alcaraz had an abrupt ending to his 2022 campaign as he had to withdraw his name from the Year-end Championship following an abdominal injury that kept him out for some weeks. His fitness coach claimed that the young Spaniard’s physical transformation last year was quite fantastic and such drastic change would not happen again. He admitted that the 1-time Grand Slam champion follows his diet and fitness routine diligently to be in the best shape.
The Spaniard earned a whopping $10,102,330 this year through his participation and winning numerous tournaments this season. And the biggest prize money earnings came from his triumph at the US Open which added $2.6 million to his kitty. It is a great coincidence that Carlos Alcaraz crossed the $10 million mark with his earnings of the year. He has been named the top-seed player at the 2023 Australian Open.
Stay Updated!
Prateek Pradhan
(601 Articles Published)