After Rafael Nadal, 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz on Monday became the player with the youngest ranking in the top five in the history of the game. The Spaniard advanced significantly in the rankings despite falling just short of defeating Lorenzo Musetti in the Hamburg European Open final 4-6, 7-6(6), 6-4.
Carlos Alcaraz becomes the youngest top five player since Rafael Nadal
Since rankings have been compiled, Alcaraz has moved up to seventh place. The youngest male Grand Slam winner in history, Michael Chang, stands at the forefront of the list. When he was 17 years old, the American won the French Open in 1989. The only other two under-18 Major champions, Mats Wilander and Boris Becker, are also included.
Bjorn Borg, Andre Agassi, and Pete Sampras are among the other legends on the list, with Nadal coming in at number six.
The 22-time Grand Slam victor entered the top five at the age of 18, just before winning his first Major at the 2005 French Open.
In the present era, Alcaraz is without a doubt the most captivating male player. In addition to being the third-youngest Masters 1000 champion in Miami earlier this year, the Spaniard made history by reaching the US Open’s youngest Grand Slam quarterfinalist since 1990.
Alcaraz entered the French Open as one of the favourites after winning the Madrid Open by defeating Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Alexander Zverev three times in a row. This performance was unique for a teenager at a time when Nadal and Djokovic still dominated the Majors.
In order to improve on a historic year in which he has already won four titles and eight top-10 finishes, he will now concentrate on finding his rhythm before the US Open in August. The 19-year-old will be confident in his chances in New York given that Djokovic’s participation is in doubt owing to his lack of vaccinations, Nadal is still recovering from an injury, and Zverev is still dealing with pain.