"Carlos Alcaraz will win Roland Garros at least once, he has the game to achieve it" - Spaniard's coach Juan Carlos Ferrero

Carlos Alcaraz's coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, recently opined that the World No. 3 has the potential to win the French Open at least once. The 21-year old made the semifinals at Roland Garros last year.

This season, Alcaraz has won the Indian Wells Masters, made it to the final four at the Argentina Open, and reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, Miami Open, and Madrid Open.

However, his European clay court swing was hindered by a right forearm injury, causing him to miss out on tournaments such as the Barcelona Open, Monte-Carlo Masters, and the recently concluded Italian Open.

Despite his injury setbacks, the Spaniard competed at the Madrid Open with his right arm fully strapped. He made it to the last eight before falling to eventual champion Andrey Rublev.

There were some doubts surrounding Carlos Alcaraz's participation in the 2024 French Open, but those concerns were dispelled when he was recently seen at Roland Garros. He has begun his preparations for the clay-court Major and had a practice session with French youngster Luca Van Assche. He was seen practicing wearing a compression sleeve on his right arm.

Juan Carlos Ferrero recently commented on the young Spaniard's strengths and potential. Ferrero acknowledged that Alcaraz's best performances have come on hardcourts, but he believes he has the potential to win the French Open at least once in his career.

“Right now I think that the surface that best suits his tennis is the hard court. Carlos has developed on this type of court, although we cannot believe that clay courts were where he was born. I think he will win Roland Garros at least once, he has the game to achieve it," Ferrero said, as quoted by Punto de Break (translated from Spanish).

Ferrero also revealed what he likes most about Carlos Alcaraz - his ability to think big. He opined that this is the quality which is needed to become one of the best players of all time.

“What I like most is that he always thinks big, not just small. To be one of the best players of all time you have to think big, there is no other option. We know that it will be very difficult to beat certain records, but we are here to try, to try to do the best we can," he added.

Carlos Alcaraz's run to the semifinals at French Open 2023

French Open 2023

Carlos Alcaraz reached the semifinals at the 2023 French Open. Seeded No. 1, he kicked off his campaign at Roland Garros by defeating Italian qualifier Flavio Cobolli 6-0, 6-2, 7-5 in the first round.

The Spaniard then continued his winning streak by defeating Taro Daniel 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 and 26th seed Denis Shapovalov 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in the second and third rounds, respectively.

The World No. 3 then faced off against Lorenzo Musetti in the fourth round, securing a straight-sets victory (6-3, 6-2, 6-2). In the quarterfinals, Alcaraz triumphed over Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-1, 7-6(5).

Carlos Alcaraz's campaign in Paris eventually came to an end in the semifinals when he was defeated by the eventual champion Novak Djokovic, 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.