Carlos Alcaraz is hoping to make his second consecutive Wimbledon final.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz stands two matches away from joining an elite list of just five male players who have achieved the ‘Channel Slam’.
With Wimbledon getting underway just a month after the French Open, players have the opportunity to win two majors back-to-back, with Novak Djokovic the last to achieve this feat in 2021.
Alcaraz’s success on the Parisian clay, along with the exceptional form he has brought over to the grass has helped him beat American duo Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe on his way to a repeat of last year’s semi-final against Daniil Medvedev.
Djokovic faces Lorenzo Musetti in the other semi-final, with the Serb hoping to avenge Alcaraz from last year and win his eighth Wimbledon title.
John McEnroe makes huge claim about Carlos Alcaraz’s game
John McEnroe has been racing around SW19 this week with the American rushing to defend Djokovic’s controversial on-court outburst.
The three-time Wimbledon champion has heaped praise on Alcaraz this week, with the young Spaniard using all his skills to progress to the last four.
McEnroe told the BBC: “He’s got a better touch, arguably, than anyone else in the game and even Novak Djokovic is thinking: ‘OK I need to bring my A game, A-plus game’.
“That was one of the greatest matches I have ever seen, the Wimbledon final last year, unbelievable match. Novak was in the position to win but somehow Alcaraz was able to rise to the occasion and beat the greatest of all time.
“This guy can do anything and everything – and he does do that. He brings the crowd in, the crowd is eating it up, thank the lord for Carlos Alcaraz is what I’m saying. We are lucky.”
McEnroe certainly knows a thing or two about delicate hands, with the American still remaining the only male player since the inception of the ATP rankings in 1973 to simultaneously hold the world No. 1 rankings in both singles and doubles.
Can anyone stop Carlos Alcaraz?
Alcaraz wore down Queen’s champion Paul in their fourth-round match on Tuesday, with the Spaniard ripping forehands down the line, before catching the American off-guard with a drop-shot.
The Spaniard’s run at the French Open saw him dispatch Jannik Sinner in five sets before going the distance in the final against Alexander Zverev.
Despite picking up the title, he lacked the consistency that we’ve seen exhibited so far at Wimbledon.
The variation Alcaraz has at his disposal is what currently sets him apart from the majority of the field, with few players able to adjust or predict what his next shot might be.
Medvedev will undoubtedly provide a stern test and hope to build on his straight-sets defeat to Alcaraz at this stage last year.
The stakes are high and with the Russian having nudged his way past Sinner in the quarter-final, the Wimbledon crowd are surely in for another thriller.
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