Carlos Alcaraz might look calm and collected on the tennis court, but he's not always like that, admitting to episodes of shaking recently.
The Spaniard is one of the most electric tennis players we've ever seen. His meteoric rise a few years ago was something to see, and very quickly, he became one of the most popular tennis players in the world.
It wasn't just fans who were raving about him but analysts, too, and it was well deserved. We haven't seen a talent like this since the Big Three, and his results back it up. He became the youngest man to become the world number one player on the ATP Tour and has won three Grand Slam trophies, the most recent one at the 2024 Roland Garros.
Ahead of this year's Wimbledon, Alcaraz admitted to experiencing shaking in his hands in last year's Wimbledon final and this year's Roland Garros final. The Spaniard exudes confidence when he's not on the tennis court, but he's a mere human, after all, susceptible to nerves.
"In the final game at Roland Garros [the French Open] this month, I was shaking. The same is true at the Wimbledon final last year. My legs, my hands. It is a difficult moment and you have to trust yourself."
"Everything I think in that moment is: 'Go for it. If you miss it, you miss it. Don't hold back. Don't regret. Play positive. Go aggressively. Play your game.' It's OK to miss that happens."
Many athletes have admitted that what Alcaraz experienced was nothing unusual. It's fairly normal, but how he handled those situations makes him as great as he is.
Champions find a way to win, often against all odds, and that's what he was able to do. He was inches away from losing last year's Wimbledon final, but he won, as champions often do.
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