Carlos Alcaraz had a massively successful Indian Wells 2024 campaign. Not only for his title defense but also for the numerous records he broke and touched along the way. One such record he shares now with his idol growing up i.e. Rafael Nadal. Here are 5 such records explained in detail:
Carlos Alcaraz comes in touching distance of Rafael Nadal
With his Indian Wells 2024 win over Daniil Medvedev, Carlos Alcaraz now has 5 ATP 1000 Masters titles. He is yet to turn 21 years old, and therefore, becomes only the 2nd player to win 5 such Masters 1000 titles before 21. Rafael Nadal still leads that roster with 9 titles before turning 21.
The 5 titles of Alcaraz are the 2022 Miami Masters, the 2022 Madrid Masters, the 2023 Indian Wells, the 2023 Madrid Masters, and the 2024 Indian Wells. He now stands a chance to make it 7 in months, as the Miami Open and the Madrid Open are approaching.
Carlos Alcaraz finds himself in the same group as German legend Boris Becker
With his 2024 Indian Wells win, Carlos Alcaraz now has won the prestigious California-based title twice in a row. This makes him only the second player to win it in back-to-back years before turning 21. German legend and 6-time Grand Slam winner Boris Becker is the only other person to do that.
Boris Becker also happens to remain the youngest Wimbledon winner in men’s singles. He achieved it when he was 18. Alcaraz won his first Wimbledon at the age of 20.
Carlos Alcaraz is also rubbing shoulders with Serbian GOAT Novak Djokovic in several stats
Not one, but Carlos Alcaraz is finding himself placed next to multiple stats of Novak Djokovic. One such stat is Alcaraz successfully becoming the first player to defend the Indian Wells title since Djokovic did in 2016. Novak Djokovic was the last player to defend his title when he won from 2014-2016 consecutively.
Carlos Alcaraz also went past Novak Djokovic for winning most ATP 1000 Masters matches before turning 21. Djokovic has won 48 matches in ATP Masters 1000 events before turning 21. Alcaraz broke that record when he won his 49th match 6-2, 6-3 against Felix Auger-Aliassime in the third round of the just-concluded Indian Wells. After that, he won 4 more matches, and so now his tally stands at 53. Nadal leads the pack here with 81 wins.
Carlos Alcaraz went past his own coach Juan Carlos Ferrero too
While Rafael Nadal is undoubtedly the greatest tennis player to come out of Spain to date, Alcaraz is not too far. However, there have been several other Spanish tennis players to make their mark. One such player is Alcaraz’s coach Juan Carlos Ferrero.
Ferrero has won 4 ATP 1000 Masters titles in his career – The 2001 Rome Masters, the 2002 Monte Carlo Masters, the 2003 Monte Carlo Masters, and the 2003 Madrid Masters. Carlos Alcaraz, therefore, becomes the second Spaniard after Nadal to win 5 ATP 1000 Masters titles. The list is mentioned above.
How Carlos Alcaraz went past tennis legend Andre Agassi
8-time Grand Slam winner and tennis legend Andre Agassi has only won the Indian Wells title once. This was in 2001 when he beat his American arch-rival Pete Sampras in the final. Agassi won the match 7–6 (7-5), 7-5, 6-1 in the final. With Alcaraz’s 2024 win, he now has 2 Indian Wells titles, which means he goes past Agassi in this regard.
