Who is Carlos Alcaraz Garfia?
CARLOS Alcaraz Garfia has become a sporting sensation in the world of tennis.
From his career on the court to his height – here’s everything you need to know about the Spanish sports star.
Who is Carlos Alcaraz Garfia?
Carlos Alcaraz Garfia was born on May 5, 2003, in Murcia, Spain, and is a professional tennis player.
As of July 2023, he is ranked world No1 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
The youngster made his first ATP debut at the Rio Open in 2020, at the early age of 16.
A year later, Alcaraz qualified for the main draw of the Australian Open – making him the youngest participant in the men’s singles.
At the 2021 Madrid Open, Alcaraz defeated Adrian Mannarino, became the youngest match-winner in Madrid Open’s history, and even broke 18-year-old Rafael Nadal’s 2004 record.
At the 2021 French Open, Alcaraz reached the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career by defeating Nikoloz Basilashvili.
The youngster also played at Wimbledon in 2021, where he lost in the second round to Daniil Medvedev.
That same year Alcaraz defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas, the fifth-best tennis player in the world, at the 2021 US Open and once again, in the quarterfinals during the 2021 Barcelona Open.
On September 11, 2022, Alcaraz won his first Grand Slam singles title at the US Open championships.
The Spanish sensation, beat Casper Ruud of Norway, 6-4, 2-6, 7-6, 6-3 and became the youngest men’s champion in the tournament’s history.
A day after his 19th birthday at the 2022 Madrid Open, he defeated Nadal in the quarterfinals.
The following day, he went on to beat Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals for his 6th straight top-10 win, and became the youngest player to win a match against a world No1 since 2004.
Nadal, who is a five-time Madrid champion, said after the game that Alcaraz “has the level to beat anyone in the world, without a doubt”.
As he continued climbing the ranks in 2022, Alcaraz became the youngest No1 in the history of the ATP Rankings at the age of 19.
However, in 2023 he announced his withdrawal from the Australian Open due to a hamstring injury, and as a result lost the world No1 ranking to Djokovic.
In his first tournament in the 2023 season, Alcaraz won his seventh title at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires, defeating second seed Cameron Norrie.
He became the first teenager to win the event.
2023 also saw the youngster celebrate his 100th career win at the Indian Wells Masters.
He was defeated by Djokovic at the French Open in the semi-finals – despite playing the “greatest shot ever seen” – and recorded his first career tournament win on grass after defeating Australian Alex de Minaur at the 2023 Queen’s Club Championships.
The tournament win in London also returned him to the World No1 rankings and meant he would be top seed for the gentlemen’s singles at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.
Thanks to his sporting success, he is sponsored by sports brands including Nike, Babolat, Rolex and Louis Vuitton.
How tall is Carlos Alcaraz Garfia?
Alcaraz stands tall at 6 foot 1 inch.
His height is considered average for a tennis player – Nadal is the same height.
According to CNN: “Height is particularly important in tennis as it makes a player’s service harder to return because of the power, height and bounce that can be generated by the server.”
Ivo Karlovic, who is 6ft 11 inches, is considered one of the tallest players of all time and can serve up to 251km/hr.
Alcaraz’s long legs certainly have helped him on the court as well.