Carlos Alcaraz Plays Matteo Berrettini at the Australian Open

Albert Molina, Alcaraz’s agent with I.M.G., worked with David Ferrer, the retired Spanish star, and with Ferrero, which is how the coaching connection was made in 2018 after Ferrero had split with Zverev on acrimonious terms.

Alcaraz spends weekdays at the academy and returns to El Palmar on weekends. “I once planned to remain at home, but it was hard to find practice partners,” he said. “I think if I would have stayed in Murcia, it would have taken longer for me to rise. In Murcia, there are more distractions. Lots of friends. Going out at night. Here in the academy I don’t have that.”

Ferrero appreciates that Alcaraz’s father does not interfere with his coaching. Ferrero, nearly as lean at age 41 as he was in his prime, won the French Open and reached No. 1 in 2003 before Federer and Nadal took command. He has been where Alcaraz wants to get.

“I’m still quite young, and I’m going through a period where everything is new for me, and Juan Carlos already has lived through this, and he can really bring me that experience that other coaches cannot,” Alcaraz said. “He lived it from the inside.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/20/sports/tennis/carlos-alcaraz-australian-open.html