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tennis express pro player gear<\/p>\nBy Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, February 4, 2026
Photo credit: Clive Brunskill\/Getty<\/p>\n
Facing a one-set deficit to the Grand Slam king, Carlos Alcaraz transformed Rod Laver Arena into an intersection of imposition and inspiration.<\/p>\n
Adjusting his game by playing with more shape on his shots, the 22-year-old Alcaraz powered past Novak Djokovic 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 to capture his first AO championship and make history as the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Contesting his 20th major, Alcaraz claims his seventh Grand Slam crown.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Reflecting on his AO title run in a new interview with AS.com\u2019s Nacho Albarr\u00e1n, <\/a>Alcaraz shed light into his competitive psyche. Alcaraz shared his greatest strength and weakness\u2014and his response to criticism of cutting ties with former coach Juan Carlos Ferrero and hiring co-coach Samuel Lopez as head coach.<\/p>\n A master improviser, Alcaraz says his vast versatility is both his greatest gift\u2014and biggest weakness. When down in matches, Alcaraz said sometimes so many tactical adjustments, shot selections and plotline possibilities swirl through his head choosing the right one can be challenging.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the end, I also have a fairly wide repertoire of things I can do. And that\u2019s good and bad,\u201d Alcaraz told AS.com.<\/a> \u201cIt\u2019s good because, when plan A doesn\u2019t work and I\u2019m being run over, I have the ability to do other things and change the dynamic.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s bad because sometimes my head thinks seven different things in less than a second and I have to choose one, and many times I choose the wrong one.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBut hey, it\u2019s a blessed problem. There is my team, which reassures me from the outside: that this level is not going to be maintained all the time, that I have to remain mentally strong and change a couple of things that look better from the outside\u2026 In that situation I realized how much I have improved mentally.\u201d<\/p>\n Alcaraz is a unique champion in that he\u2019s both the calm in the center of the chaotic storm\u2014and simultaneously the shotmaking storm itself.\u00a0 Alcaraz\u2019s insight on his strength and weakness echo comments he made to Tennis Now two weeks before winning his maiden major at the 2022 US Open. When we asked Alcaraz his greatest weapon then, he replied \u201cmy unpredictability, the opponent don\u2019t know what\u2019s coming next.\u201d<\/p>\n When Alcaraz split with his coach\u2014former world No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero\u2014last December it sent shockwaves through the tennis world. During his wildly successful seven-year partnership with former world No. 1 Ferrero, Alcaraz won 24 titles, including 6 Grand Slam championships, rose to world No. 1 and earned more than $57 Million in prize money. Additionally, Ferrero earned ATP Coach of the Year honors in 2025 for the second time in the last four years.<\/p>\n Still, coach Samuel Lopez, who previously coached Ferrero, was a major contributor to Alcaraz\u2019s Melbourne title run, particularly in the epic semifinals.<\/p>\n \u00a0A courageous Alcaraz overcame apparent mid-match cramping, twice vomited into his towel, rallied from 3-5 down in the final set and reeled off four games in a row fending off Alexander Zverev 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 6-7(4), 7-5 in a mind-blowing Melbourne marathon semifinal. During that match, Alcaraz repeatedly visited his support box, at the rear of the court, where Lopez supplied calm motivation reminding the Spanish superstar to \u201ckeep breathing\u201d and \u201ckeep fighting.\u201d<\/p>\n Obviously, Alcaraz deserves all the credit for the grit and guts she showed fighting off Zverev, but his support team never once pressed the panic button in that match\u2014even as it appeared the cramps could cost him the semifinal.<\/p>\n Coach Lopez received the AO trophy on court and presented it to Alcaraz.\u00a0<\/p>\n