Carlos Alcaraz is one of the most likeable figures in tennis at the moment, seldom pictured without a broad smile plastered across his face.
Naturally, he has had little to frown about recently, having enjoyed a mesmeric summer which saw him win Roland Garros, Wimbledon and then a silver medal for his country too.
It’s impossible to hate the Spaniard, who is not only a supremely gifted player, but also by all accounts a great human too.
Andy Roddick, speaking about his experiences with the youngster across the last week, has sought to provide a little more depth into what the 21-year-old is really like.
Andy Roddick reveals what Carlos Alcaraz is like behind the scenes
Telling a story from the US Open Fan Week that has just concluded, Roddick spoke on his Served with Andy Roddick podcast about Carlos Alcaraz and how he conducts himself behind the scenes.
A bubbly, smiley and all-around energetic guy on the court, there is every chance that once he leaves the public eye, that joy fades.
However, the American has sought to affirm the Spaniard’s infectious happiness, as he recalls: ‘‘I passed Alcaraz in the hallway… by the way he’s like the nicest. His energy, it’s this big friendly energy all the time and it was just so much fun.
‘All these legends are all in the same room, it’s so fun to see how they all interact. And so Alcaraz walks away, says something to Carol [Wozniacki] like ‘Oh don’t double fault!’ Just general heckling before you go out. So I just said ‘Carol don’t listen to him, he hasn’t won a major in weeks!’
‘And he looked back and he started laughing, I had a nice conversation with Juan Carlos who basically said this has been a pretty amazing summer.
‘So typical of Ferrero though, because then he was like ‘But now we have to focus again.’ He let himself laugh for about four seconds. It was funny.’
Ironically, this comes after Carlos Alcaraz revealed his pre-tournament anger ahead of the US Open, as his warm-up match was cut short.
The US Open Fan Week has been a raging success
The US Open is one of tennis’ most coveted competitions, but for many, it is also wholly unaffordable.
Some of the costs just to sit in the gods to watch a match around Flushing Meadows are ludicrous, and provide a real barrier to entry for so many.
That’s where the US Open Fan Week comes in, providing a unique opportunity to see some of the sport’s greatest-ever past and present players battle it out, for FREE!
Not to mention the qualifiers that go on alongside the festivities too, all of which help promote the sport to new audiences who might have otherwise never been able to see such a high level of tennis.
Stars like Andre Agassi, John McEnroe, Roddick and Alcaraz were just a few to participate in this week of excitement and fun.
Given how adored the latter of this quartet is, his inclusion should come as no surprise.
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