Andy Roddick has hit out at those who are calling for Carlos Alcaraz to replace his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero as he claimed expectations should be “reset” after the Big Three era.
Ferrero has been an integral figure in Alcaraz’s development as a player and meteoric rise to the top of the sport.
During an illustrious playing career spanning from 1998 to 2012, Ferrero reached world No 1 and won 16 titles, including the 2003 French Open.
Alcaraz has been coached by Ferrero since he started training at his compatriot’s academy in September 2018, when he was 16.
The Spanish star became the youngest world No 1 in ATP history after winning his maiden Grand Slam title at the 2022 US Open as a 19-year-old.
The 21-year-old, who is currently ranked third, has won a further three majors under Ferrero’s tutelage.
Despite the huge success the pair’s partnership has brought, Ferrero’s role has come under scrutiny from some fans amid a mixed start to the 2025 season for Alcaraz.
Ferrero faced criticism from some quarters for Alcaraz’s tactics in his defeat to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open quarter-finals in January.
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Alcaraz won his only title of the year to date at the Rotterdam Open in February and has since reached the quarter-finals in Doha, semi-finals in Indian Wells and second round in Miami. He is currently competing at the Monte Carlo Masters.
In a discussion on Tennis Channel, Roddick backed Ferrero and argued Alcaraz is being unfairly judged by standards of success set by the dominance of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
“Do you guys remember the crazy times before the Big Three when players didn’t make the finals every week,” said the former world No 1.
“Yeah, we kind of have to reset expectations, and one of [Paul] Annacone’s former charges, Pete Sampras, as great as he was, winner of 14 majors, six year-end No 1’s — he would lose third round sometimes. He just would. He would win one or two majors a year instead of three.
“We have to reset expectations, right? Carlos Alcaraz already has more majors than Andy Murray, he’s halfway towards icons like [Jimmy] Connors, [Andre] Agassi. It’s just absurd what he’s done.
“We need to reset a little bit, and anyone calling for a coaching change doesn’t know anything about coaching.”
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