Rafael Nadal congratulates Carlos Alcaraz for creating history with Miami Open title win | Tennis | Sport
Rafael Nadal has piled praise on Carlos Alcaraz after the Spaniard became the youngest man to win the Miami Open on Sunday. The 18-year-old defeated Casper Ruud 7-5 6-4 to win the biggest title of his young career and the world No 3 congratulated his compatriot shortly after, claiming it was the “first of many” big titles for the world No 16.
Alcaraz managed to bounce back from a close loss to Nadal in the Indian Wells semi-final by winning his very next tournament. The 18-year-old pushed his idol to three sets in the first tournament of the ‘Sunshine Double’ but just fell short.
The defeat didn’t seem to set the world No 16 back as he arrived in Miami and produced a string of impressive performances to reach his maiden Masters 1000 final, aged just a month older than Nadal was when he did the same in 2005. But Alcaraz took it one step further, defeating Ruud in straight sets to lift the biggest title of his career and become the youngest man to win the title.
Minutes after lifting the trophy, the 21-time champion was straight onto Twitter congratulating his young successor, who he has previously likened to his younger self. “Congratulations Carlitos @alcarazcarlos03 for your HISTORICAL triumph in #Miami,” Nadal wrote, adding a host of applauding emojis and the Spanish flag. “The first of many to come, for sure!”
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“And congrats @CasperRuud98 for an amazing tournament and result. Great swing!!! See you at the @rnadalacademy soon,” he wrote. Nadal has already been full of praise for Alcaraz in the past, agreeing with comparisons between himself and the teenager.
“I think he is unstoppable in terms of his career,” the 35-year-old said ahead of his semi-final clash with Alcaraz in Indian Wells. “He’s a good guy and [reminds] me a lot of things like when I was 17 or 18 years old kid.” He also predicted even bigger things than a Masters 1000 title for the 18-year-old, saying: “Carlos is a great guy and he is a potential No 1 player and multi-Grand Slam winner without a doubt, no? So it’s great that in Spain we have a player like him.”
