Carlos Alcaraz: 'Phenomenal' Spaniard wows Andy Roddick with Laver Cup 'take over' - 'Like we saw with the Big Three'
Published 26/09/2024 at 12:31 GMT+1
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Carlos Alcaraz was the star of the show for Team Europe as they won back the Laver Cup. Alcaraz won a record eight points to inspire Team Europe to victory, and former world No. 1 Andy Roddick was impressed with how the Spaniard rediscovered his top level in Berlin. Roddick also said he was "amazed" at how many other players declared that Alcaraz played the best tennis in the world right now.
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Andy Roddick says Carlos Alcaraz’s “take over” of the Laver Cup was reminiscent of the ‘Big Three’ and praised his “phenomenal” doubles play.
Alcaraz won a record eight points for Team Europe on his Laver Cup debut and beat Taylor Fritz in the deciding match on the final day.
Team World’s Ben Shelton compared Alcaraz to powerful Marvel villain Thanos while Alexander Zverev said his team-mate is already a “legend” of the sport.
Former world No. 1 Roddick was impressed with what he saw from Alcaraz, especially coming off a shock loss to Botic van de Zandschulp at the US Open.
"I think this was an important weekend for Carlos Alcaraz,” said Roddick on the Served with Roddick podcast.
“Massive summer, one of the craziest losses I've seen just based on build up and Olympics and two Slams and the whole thing, young guy… Alcaraz losing to Van de Zandschulp in straight sets, on a scoreline that’s as lopsided as he's ever been a part of.
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"Then quickly re-establish at the Laver Cup that I'm the best player in this building full of earth's best players, and coming through at the end. Also the way that the other players were very easily like ‘oh yeah, he's the best player here’.
"It was kind of like the thing that we saw with the Big Three and now they're discussing Carlos in that same light and he kind of proved them right."
So good was Alcaraz at the Laver Cup that he was compared to Roger Federer at his peak.
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Watch as Team Europe lift the Laver Cup for a fifth time after comeback victory
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Roddick added: “I was surprised, especially on the heels of [Jannik] Sinner being dominant at the US Open… I was amazed at how many players without even flinching, just said ‘best top level in tennis right now is Carlos Alcaraz’.
"Maybe they feel like he has more days when he is a bit like a heart-rate monitor [up and down] if he hasn’t quite found it, but the general feeling seems to be once he finds it and has it you have a massive problem, it’s kind of curtains.
“It was good to see him back and see him take over.”
Alcaraz played four matches on his Laver Cup debut, winning both of his singles contests in straight sets and winning one out of two doubles matches.
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Alcaraz does not usually compete in doubles and Roddick said the way he took to the format was “phenomenal”.
“Watching him play doubles and flying around the court, he has unbelievable doubles instincts," he explained.
“If you watch him play doubles and then go to a lock-stock tour event, it’s different gravy. He is unbelievable on the doubles court.
“You can’t get away from him, it’s phenomenal, and it shows you how great his instincts are for tennis in general that he doesn’t play doubles and then you just insert him, and he’s making all the right crosses, moves, hitting the ball in the middle at the right times, he’s doing all these things that normally take more reps.”
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