How old was Rafael Nadal when he won his first Grand Slam and how old is Carlos Alcaraz?
Carlos Alcaraz beat Norwegian Casper Ruud (23) in the US Open final (6-4, 2-6, 7-6, 6-3). It was Alcaraz’s first Grand Slam victory and earned him the top spot in the ATP rankings at the age of 19, the youngest male tennis player to ever reach No. 1.
The Spanish tennis player from Murcia is the youngest man to win a major title since Rafael Nadal when he won the 2005 French Open, and the youngest to win the US Open since Pete Sampras in 1990 also at the age of 19.
The Spaniard is in good company with fellow countrymen
With his 2022 US Open victory, Alcaraz has become the first teenage World No. 1 and the fourth male Spanish tennis player to reach the ATP top spot, putting him in an elite group with his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, Carlos Moya, and Rafael Nadal.
Alcaraz leads the ATP Tour this season with 51 wins, five victories ahead of Stefanos Tsitsipas (46). With his victory in New York over Ruud, Alcaraz has also climbed to first place in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin and has a great chance of becoming the youngest year-end World No. 1 in history.
The last player to become world no. 1 after competing in the US Open was Alcaraz’s coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, who gained the top spot after losing to Andy Roddick in the final of the 2003 tournament. The US Open final on Sunday against Ruud was the first time in a Grand Slam championship match that both players had never been World No.1, but had the top spot within reach.
Alcaraz is now part of a select group of active players
Alcaraz is the sixth active player to reach World No1. and is the 28th player in history to achieve the feat. He joins Danill Medvedev, who lost the top spot this week as well as other current tennis superstars: Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and fellow Spaniard, Rafael Nadal.
Spain is now second only two the United States in number of male No. 1 tennis players and with Alcaraz’s achievement the country has passed Russia, Sweden and Australia. The six Americans to hold the No. 1 position are:
- Jimmy Connors
- John McEnroe
- Jim Courier
- Pete Sampras
- Andre Agassi
- Andy Roddick
The Spanish Armada continues to grow
As mentioned before, Alcaraz is now the fourth male Spanish tennis player to reach the No. 1 position in the World rankings. He joins his fellow countrymen Juan Carlos Ferrero, Carlos Moya, and Rafael Nadal. Spain has a strong tradition in the sport and Nadal has dominated over the past 15 years alongside Djokovic and Federer. Therefore, Alcaraz’s home country expects great things from the young player over the next few years.
Other Spanish tennis players to have reached World No. 1 are Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1995 and more recently, Garbiñe Muguruza who reached the top spot on Sep. 11, 2017.