Carlos Alcaraz revealed that he found out about Rafael Nadal’s retirement an hour before his match on Thursday, the day he crashed out of the ongoing 2024 Shanghai Masters. The Spanish wrote a heartfelt letter, remembering his time with his hero.
Alcaraz lost to Czech Tomas Machac in the Shanghai Masters quarterfinals, shockingly falling 7-6 (5), 7-5. The newly crowned Beijing champion had not lost since September’s Davis Cup group stage matches, and he was riding a 12-match winning streak.
Interestingly, Nadal announced his retirement from tennis just hours before the match. The final match of his career will be the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga from November 19–24.
During his press conference just after the unexpected defeat, Alcaraz was questioned about how the news about the 22-time Grand Slam champion affected him on the court.
He expressed his thoughts and said: “It didn’t affect me at all before the match. I didn’t get distracted at all. I was just really focused on the match. I didn’t think about Rafa’s news.”
Alcaraz acknowledged that it was difficult to accept the news, but he insisted that he was able to get over it in time for the game.
He added: “Obviously when I watched it, it was tough to accept it. I was in shock a little bit. Thanks that I saw it like one hour before the match, so I had time to accept it and forget it a little bit before the match. It is a really difficult thing, really difficult news for everybody, and even tougher for me. He has been my idol since I started playing tennis. I look up to him. Proudly, thanks to him, I really wanted to become a professional tennis player. Losing him, in a certain way, is going to be difficult for us, so I will try to enjoy as much as I can when he’s going to play.”
Carlos Alcaraz in 2024
Ranked world no.2, the Spaniard played his last match on the 10th of October when he capitulated to world no.33 Tomas Machac 7-6(5) 7-5 in the quarter in Shanghai (draw).
Currently, during this year the Spaniard has a composed 51-10 match record. Alcaraz conquered 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. Carlos got to the final in Paris.
Carlos Alcaraz will compete against the world no.357 Gabi Adrian Boitan in the . They have never played each other until now in top competitions.
The Spaniard clinched 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. The Spaniard got to the final in Paris (Olympics).
Alcaraz won 17 titles in his career: 5 on hard courts, 8 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 3 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
He is also scheduled to play in Paris (Rolex Paris Masters). The main draw will start on the 28th of October.
Rafael Nadal in 2024
Currently the world no.158, Nadal played his last match on the 29th of July when he surrendered to world no.4 Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (draw).
This season Rafael has a 12-7 record. Rafael Nadal’s most significant result of the present year was reaching the final in Bastad.
Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal played each other 3 times. Their current record is 2-1 for Nadal. The last time they squared off, Carlos Alcaraz won 6-2 1-6 6-3 in the quarter in Madrid (Mutua Madrid Open) in May 2022.
In the video below you can watch the highlights.
Carlos Alcaraz in 2024
Now the world no.2, Carlos played his last match on the 10th of October when he capitulated to world no.33 Tomas Machac 7-6(5) 7-5 in the quarter in Shanghai (draw).
This year Alcaraz owns a composed 51-10 match record. Carlos clinched 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. Alcaraz was the runner-up in Paris.
Carlos Alcaraz will fight against the world no.357 Gabi Adrian Boitan in the . In the past, they have never played each other up to now in top events.
Carlos clinched 4 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open, Wimbledon and Beijing. The Spaniard was the finalist in Paris (Olympics).
Alcaraz won 17 titles in his career: 5 on hard courts, 8 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 3 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
He is also scheduled to play in Paris (Rolex Paris Masters). The main draw will start on the 28th of October.
Rafael Nadal in 2024
Now ranked no.158, Rafael played his last match on the 29th of July when he capitulated to world no.4 Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (draw).
During this season Nadal has achieved a compiled 12-7 win-loss record. Rafael Nadal’s most significant result of the year was getting to the final in Bastad.
Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal fought against each other 3 times. Their record is 2-1 for Nadal. Before, the last time they fought against each other, Carlos Alcaraz won 6-2 1-6 6-3 in the quarter in Madrid (Mutua Madrid Open) in May 2022.
You can watch the highlights in the following video.