'We Don't Stop For Holidays': Alcaraz Trains On Christmas Eve Ahead Of Djokovic Exhibition

Sunday, 24 December 2023 at 19:47

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byNurein Ahmed

Christmas Eve is a workday for Carlos Alcaraz who shared photos of his training session before the grand battle against rival Novak Djokovic in an exibition.

Alcaraz and Djokovic accepted an undisclosed offer - although the paycheck is projected to be in seven figures - to play one match in Saudi Arabia on December 27 as part of the Riyadh Season - an annual government-sponsored entertainment and sports festival.

A WTA match featuring Ons Jabeur against Aryna Sabalenka will take place on Boxing Day. Alcaraz's season ended on November 18 at the hands of Djokovic in the semifinal of the ATP Finals in Turin.

The Spaniard remained in Europe to fulfill sponsorship obligations with Swiss watch manufacturer Rolex and Dermatological skincare brand ISDIN before traveling to Mexico City at the end of November to play Tommy Paul in front of nearly 30,000 spectators at the TennisFest GNP exhibition.

Thereafter, Alcaraz enjoyed a well-earned vacation in Los Cabos, where he partnered with a luxurious hotel to offer tennis clinics to guests at a fee during his stay there. He returned to Spain in early December, paying a visit to his home city, Murcia, where he lit the Green Christmas tree to signal the start of the festive season.

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Alcaraz then made the short trip to Villena, where he has been training for over a week at the Ferrero Tennis Academy, and warmly welcomed Jannik Sinner for a practice session.

The 20-year-old is looking to launch a fresh bid on the World No. 1 ranking at the Australian Open in the absence of his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, who has undergone a knee operation and is recovering.

Although Ferrero has supervised Alcaraz's practices; he won't travel to Melbourne. But that hasn't stopped his protege from working overtime and Alcaraz shared photos of his latest session at the academy just a day before Christmas.