The big question surrounding Carlos Alcaraz’s coaching team that could be answered at the Barcelona Open

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Carlos Alcaraz has now won two titles in 2025 following his impressive victory in the Principality.

The 21-year-old Spaniard won his first title of the year in the Netherlands when Alcaraz beat Alex de Minaur in the final of the Rotterdam Open.

Alcaraz then suffered several disappointing results on hard courts, failing to pick up a title at either Sunshine Double event for the first time since 2021.

Returning to form on clay, Alcaraz won the Monte-Carlo Masters for the first time, taking his Masters 1000 tally to six.

Traveling to Spain, the world number two secured a big win in his opening match at the Barcelona Open without his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, in his corner.

The 45-year-old has missed several tournaments this year, as questions surrounding Ferrero’s impact on Alcaraz’s team continue to circle.

Is Juan Carlos Ferrero the right man to lead Carlos Alcaraz to further Grand Slam success?

Spanish media outlet Marca is reporting that Ferrero is set to join Alcaraz for the remainder of the Barcelona Open tournament.

On the surface, that may seem like good news for the four-time Major champion, but Ferrero is yet to lead Alcaraz to a title in 2025.

Under the stewardship of coach Samuel Lopez, Alcaraz won both the Rotterdam Open and the Monte-Carlo Masters, events Ferrero skipped this year.

The pair’s winning run continued in Barcelona, as Alcaraz beat Ethan Quinn in straight sets to advance to the third round.

With Ferrero returning to the fold for Alcaraz’s next match against Serbia’s Laslo Djere, it will be interesting to see what effect his presence has on the number one seed’s performance.

If Alcaraz fails to win this year’s Barcelona Open, having done so on his previous two visits to the tournament, perhaps it could be time for Lopez to replace Ferrero as the 21-year-old’s full-time head coach.

Jannik Sinner finally broke through to win his first Grand Slam after making a coaching change in 2022

Alcaraz will head to the French Open next month as one of the favorites alongside world number one Jannik Sinner.

The Spaniard may take inspiration from his Italian rival, who himself made a bold coaching change on his way to Grand Slam success.

Sinner was coached by Riccardo Piatti from a young age, breaking into the world’s top ten for the first time in 2021.

However, as Sinner failed to make the breakthrough at Grand Slam events, he bravely chose to part ways with Piatti in 2022, bringing in Simone Vagnozzi and Darren Cahill as his replacements.

The gamble quickly paid off as Sinner won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open less than two years later.

Jannik Sinner’s route to the 2024 Australian Open title

• 2024 Australian Open F – Jannik Sinner beat Daniil Medvedev, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3
• 2024 Australian Open SF – Jannik Sinner beat Novak Djokovic, 6-1, 6-2, 6-7, 6-3
• 2024 Australian Open QF – Jannik Sinner beat Andrey Rublev, 6-4, 7-6, 6-3
• 2024 Australian Open 4R – Jannik Sinner beat Karen Khachanov, 6-4, 7-5, 6-3
• 2024 Australian Open 3R – Jannik Sinner beat Sebastian Baez, 6-0, 6-1, 6-3
• 2024 Australian Open 2R – Jannik Sinner beat Jesper de Jong, 6-2, 6-2, 6-2
• 2024 Australian Open 1R – Jannik Sinner beat Botic van de Zandschulp, 6-4, 7-5, 6-3

Sinner became world number one shortly after before adding another two Major trophies to his ever-growing collection.

At the time, some questioned Sinner’s decision to part ways with Piatti in favor of Cahill and Vagnozzi, but those questions have now been put to bed.

It remains to be seen if Alcaraz will follow suit, but perhaps he’ll wait to see how he gets on at this week’s Barcelona Open before making any rash decisions.

Alcaraz will continue his assault on a third Barcelona Open title when he takes on Djere for a place in the quarter-finals on Thursday, April 17.