After Carlos Alcaraz won the 2023 Wimbledon Championships, the entire sporting community poured in to hail the Spanish sensation. Among them were Ferrari star Carlos Sainz and two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso.
Alcaraz is already making waves in the world of tennis, despite his young age. At the age of just 20, he won his second Grand Slam title, defeating Djokovic who is considered by many to be the greatest tennis player of all time. The entire Spanish sporting community was proud to see him continue the legacy of his country’s greatest ever, Rafael Nadal.
A new name. A new reign. 🇪🇸@carlosalcaraz, your 2023 Gentlemen’s Singles champion#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/3KNlRTOPhx
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 16, 2023
Alcaraz lost the first set and was getting comprehensively outplayed by Djokovic. But he came back strongly to take the next two sets. Djokovic started a comeback to level the proceedings, but a fifth-set thriller saw the star from Murcia finally win his first Wimbledon title. Alcaraz won 1-6, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4.
Carlos Sainz joins Fernando Alonso in hailing Spain’s latest sporting sensation
Carlos Sainz and Carlos Alcaraz don’t just share the same first name but are also two of Spain’s most popular athletes. One of them made history at Wimbledon by becoming only the third Spaniard to win the prestigious crown. The other, Sainz, made history last year in the UK, when he became only the second Spaniard after Fernando Alonso to win an F1 race.
“Incredible,” Sainz wrote on his Twitter. “Congratulations crack, proud of you!”
Increíble 🚀🇪🇸 Enhorabuena crack, orgullosos de ti! 💪🏼 @carlosalcaraz https://t.co/lP39rpqlc1
— Carlos Sainz (@Carlossainz55) July 16, 2023
Sainz wasn’t the only driver to congratulate him. Alonso too, who is hailed as one of Spain’s greatest athletes sent his regards to Alcaraz. “The best. Congratulations,” Alonso wrote.
El mejor 🥇🏆! Enhorabuena @carlosalcaraz 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 https://t.co/NuK3tMfBMD
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) July 16, 2023
Both Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso are hailing Alcaraz currently, and many people feel that he has the potential to become as good as Nadal. In the past, both Sainz and Alonso sent congratulatory messages to Nadal when he too, was making history.
Rafael Nadal, a role model to Sainz
Rafael Nadal is arguably one the best athletes of all time. Known as the ‘King of Clay’, Nadal was an inspiration to Sainz, as he admitted in an interview in the past. In an interview with Corriere, Sainz said, that outside the world of racing, he idolizes Nadal, who brought so much glory to Spain.
“I’m Carlos Sainz,” he said. “But I have role models: Rafa Nadal, Alonso for grit. My dad, of course.”
It is interesting to note that Sainz considers Alonso one of his idols. He grew up watching the Oviedo-born driver create history in F1, and after year of handwork, the two of them are currently sharing the grid together. Like Alonso, Sainz too, dreams to bringing F1 championship glory back to Spain.
