Carlos Alcaraz grew up idolizing Roger Federer, but sadly, he never got a chance to play with him, even though he hopes that might happen sometime in the future.
Alcaraz emerged as a teenage star on the ATP Tour at a time when Federer largely wasn’t playing anymore. The last proper season the Swiss Maestro had was in 2019, which is about two years before Alcaraz started to really make an impact on the ATP Tour.
The Spaniard grew up idolizing Federer, which was highlighted by a video of a young Alcaraz declaring Federer as his tennis idol.
A few years ago, a 12-year-old Alcaraz was interviewed at one of the events he played, and when asked about his favorite player, without any hesitation, he replied: "Roger Federer." A dream-come-true moment happened a few years later when they practiced together at Wimbledon.
Unfortunately, they never contested a match against each other, as Federer has now officially retired from the sport. It was a bittersweet moment for Alcaraz, who held out hope that he would someday play his idol on a tennis court, but it seems like it won’t be happening in a competitive format anymore.
They might find a way to find themselves on a tennis court together again, as Federer highlighted he is not entirely done with tennis, hoping to practice or play some exhibition events in the future.
Alcaraz certainly would enjoy at least an exhibition match against Federer, if nothing else. That could be seen in the way the young Spaniard reacted to the 20-time Grand Slam champion's retirement news on social media.
Alcaraz posted a response in which he noted Federer as one of his tennis idols and a huge source of inspiration while also telling Federer that he hopes to play against him sometime in the future.
"Roger has been one of my idols and a source of inspiration! Thank you for everything you have done for our sport! I still want to play with you! Wish you all the luck in the world for what comes next!"
0 Comments