Rafael Nadal has praised his countryman Carlos Alcaraz as the most deserving player for the No. 1 spot in the men’s tennis global ranking.
19-year-old Alcaraz had a stellar 2022 which saw him claim five titles, some of which included ATP Masters 1000 in Miami and Madrid as well as a maiden US Open.
The victory at Flushing Meadows over Norwegian hotshot Casper Ruud propelled Alcaraz to No. 1, with Nadal behind him at No. 2.
While Nadal is pleased the men’s top two is occupied by Spaniards, he does not think it will be that way for long, citing his own inability to play too many tournaments due to injury problems.
“It’s very nice that there are two Spanish tennis players at the top of the ranking, but I don’t think it’s a trend. It will be difficult for us to stay there throughout 2023. It is very difficult to maintain the level necessary to be so high for so long,” Nadal was quoted by Tennis World.
“In my case, I play a few tournaments a year and I could only be there if I play at a very high level all the time.
“He [Alcaraz] has enormous potential, he is very young and he still has a lot of time ahead of him. He is at number one because he deserves it. There are very good young tennis players at the moment, Casper was also close to his first slam and to being number one.”
Nadal participated in 12 tournaments in 2022, winning four including two Grand Slams in the Australian Open and French Open.
He exited the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin in the round-robin stage, losing to Taylor Fritz and Togolese descent Felix Auger-Aliassime, before beating Casper Ruud 7-5, 7-5 in the final group game.
