There is no doubt that 2022’s tennis star of the year has
been
Carlos Alcaraz.
The Spanish superstar has set the year alight with his
tennis, completing a meteoric rise through the tennis rankings with his US Open
triumph over Casper Ruud in the battle for World No.1
Now sitting at the peak of men’s tennis, the 19-year-old has
the world at his feet as he looks to dominate the sport for the next 15 or so
years.
The comparison with the three ageing greats of Roger
Federer, Rafa Nadal and
Novak Djokovic have been endless since he won in New
York, but a mark of his competitiveness is found with an astonishing stat from
his year.
With an overall match record this year of 52-10, Alcaraz has
won a set in every match he has played (except for two exhibitions matches).
This extraordinary record is similar to that of Djokovic
during his dominant 2011 season.
Then, the Serbian had won a set in his first 58 matches of
the year before retiring against Andy Murray.
Alcaraz became the first man to match
Djokovic to the 50-match marker of winning at least a set when losing in three to Tommy Paul at
the Canadian Open in Montreal but has now surpassed Djokovic’s record.
Alcaraz has won a set in every single one of his 62 matches,
a phenomenal achievement with just a couple of months of the year to go.
However, Djokovic’s 2011 record is not one that should be
downplayed, with the 21-time Grand Slam winner ending the year with a 70-6
record, taking home three Grand Slam titles and finishing with a 10-1 record
over Nadal and Federer.
But Alcaraz is on track to become the first ever man to win
a set in every match he plays in a calendar year. Another step on the long road
to become the greatest.