Alcaraz to return to World No. 1 after confirming participation in Rome

After successfully defending his title in Madrid, Carlos Alcaraz confirmed his participation at the Italian Open in Rome

Carlos Alcaraz, Madrid 2023 | © Antoine Couvercelle / Panoramic

Jamie Malachy

May 8, 2023

Carlos Alcaraz looks set to be the World No. 1 once again when Roland-Garros gets underway at the end of this month, with the Spaniard only needing to appear at the Italian Open in order to regain the top spot from Novak Djokovic.

The newly-turned 20-year-old was still basking in the afterglow of his second Madrid Open title on Sunday when he confirmed in his post-match conference that he fully intends to compete in Rome, which me missed last year in order to re-energize himself for the French Open following an intense series of title wins.

I really want to play there. I missed last year
Carlos Alcaraz

“I really want to play there. I missed last year”, the current World No. 2 said of the ATP’s third clay-court Masters event in the Italian capital. “I don’t know the feelings over there, but for sure I’m gonna enjoy that tournament. Of course it’s great to play in front of the Italian crowd again.”

Having just taken the fourth ATP Masters event of his career (Miami 2022, Madrid 2022, Indian Wells 2023, Madrid 2023), as part of a stunning back-to-back double triumph in Barcelona and Madrid – a feat he has now achieved two years in a row – Alcaraz has put himself firmly in the rear-view mirror of Novak Djokovic in the rankings race.

25 points guaranteed for Alcaraz

Alcaraz has already won three titles on clay this year, reaching the final in his fourth in which he was severely hampered by a leg injury.

Indeed, the young Spaniard’s superb clay-court season thus far has meant that as few as five points are needed for him to return to the summit of the ATP rankings, regardless of all other results.

As a seeded player, Alcaraz is guaranteed 25 points just for entering the draw in Rome. This means that it is all but certain that the reigning US Open champion will open his bid for a second Grand Slam title in Paris as the newly-crowned World No. 1.

Alcaraz has already spent 22 weeks as the leading men’s player. His absence at the Australian Open – combined with Djokovic’s triumph in Melbourne – meant that he lost the top spot to the Serb. With a stunning run to the title at Indian Wells, Alcaraz moved back ahead of Djokovic briefly, but was unable to defend his title in Miami and slipped back down to second once again.

Cat-and-mouse race between Djokovic and Alcaraz

The cat-and-mouse race between the young Spaniard, widely regarded as the golden future of the men’s game, and one of the sport’s established all-time greats in Djokovic has provided the scintillating backdrop to a season in which both players have gone toe-to-toe in a generational battle for the ages.

What is more tantalising is that they have yet to meet on the court this season. Should the 22-time Grand Slam champion recover from the niggling elbow injury that ruled him out of Madrid, a first Grand Slam meeting between the two would be a truly mouth-watering encounter.

Away from the match court, it is advantage Alcaraz again for now, as he stands on the precipice of retaking his world-leading ranking once more.

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