Top seed Carlos Alcaraz has arrived at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals, where he will try to lift the trophy on his tournament debut.
“I am so excited to play here against the best young players of the year,” Alcaraz said upon his arrival Saturday evening. “I am really happy to be here.”
It has been a breakthrough season for the 18-year-old Spaniard, who has climbed from No. 141 in the FedEx ATP Rankings to as high as No. 35 in 2021. The Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag champion is a teen, but quickly acclimatising to the big stage.
“I am feeling comfortable and have a lot of confidence with myself,” Alcaraz said. “It has been a brilliant year and I hope to show a good level here at the Next Gen [ATP Finals].”
Fans are still getting to know Alcaraz, who owns wins against Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, former World No. 1 Andy Murray and Italian Matteo Berrettini this season. And the pupil of Juan Carlos Ferrero is thrilled to compete alongside the best 21-and-under players in the world this week at the Allianz Cloud.
“Playing against the young guys like me with the different conditions, best of five sets, four games [is nice],” Alcaraz said. “I am excited to play.”