Carlos Alcaraz’s Netflix documentary threw up plenty of talking points, with the targets being set for the 21-year-old Spaniard sparking a big debate.
Alcaraz has already won four Grand Slam titles in what has been a sensational start to his career, but it was clear that the team working with him are piling the pressure on to try and take him to the levels of excellence achieved by Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
The three greatest players of all-time have won a total of 66 Grand Slam titles between them, as they re-wrote the record books in tennis and good the levels of achievement to previously unimaginable levels.
Yet Alcaraz’s manager Albert Molina and his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, suggested their young charge needed to change his attitude if he wanted to win as many major titles as the greatest players of all time.
“I’m starting to doubt whether Carlos can become the greatest player in history because of his approach to work and sacrifice. It’s so different from the Big 3,” said Ferrero in the documentary.
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He was also shown talking to Alcaraz as he gave him advice that confirmed he didn’t agree with his decision to take time away from tennis.
“We must learn from our mistakes,” said Ferrero. “You need to find the balance between vacation, training, and motivation. And it’s not easy. You were invited to a Formula 1 weekend, which I didn’t think was right for you, but you went anyway.
“There will be many times when I won’t agree with you. There will be plenty of moments when you’ll want to do something else. As you mature, you’ll understand what you need and what you really should be doing.
“We’re here to help you and tell you things. Novak is extremely careful with his diet, he sleeps as much as he needs to, and he trains as much as he must. It’s absolute dedication to being the greatest of all time.”
Now former British No 1 Laura Robson had hit out at those comments, as she suggested the levels of expectations being placed onto Alcaraz’s shoulders are not realistic.
“It was an interesting documentary because it showed how much pressure he puts on himself and also from his team,” Robson told Sky Sports Tennis.
“They are talking about wanting to get to three or four Grand Slams a year and if we do it for this many years, we will hit Novak’s numbers.
“To be even thinking about that is kind of absurd.
“We’ve had the best three players of all-time back-to-back-to-back in Federer, Nadal and Djokovic and for anyone to try and hit those heights would be unheard of.
“For anyone to finish a career with four or five Slams, that is already amazing. And yet we are trying to get people into the 20s.”
Former British No 1 Tim Henman also gave his verdict on Alcaraz’s Netflix film, as he suggested discipline will be needed for the Spaniard to have any hope of having a career to match the game’s all-time greats.
“The reality is, the very best have good habits, whatever the event,” said Henman.
“With Alcaraz, we are in a conversation with Federer, Nadal and Djokovic and that’s the slight question mark with Alcaraz. I love watching him play, he’s absolutely brilliant, but there are times when he lacks the discipline around shot selection.
“When you are talking about building that Grand Slam tally and getting into double figures, that’s the question mark for me.”
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