“It’s a privilege to have him around” – Alcaraz relishing facing idol Nadal ahead of ‘Netflix Slam’

Spanish tennis is enjoying a truly golden era that shows little sign of coming to an end.

As one great Spaniard nears the end of an astonishing career most in Spain thought would never be replicated by a homegrown player, along comes another prodigious young talent whose potential could well produce a body of work to rival his elder compatriot.

On Sunday afternoon, the pair will meet in an exhibition match in Las Vegas – dubbed the ‘Netflix Slam’ – as the great Rafael Nadal takes on Carlos Alcaraz in the desert.

“It’s a privilege to have him around,” Alcaraz said of the 22-time Grand Slam champion in a recent interview with Spanish newspaper Marca.

“It’s always nice [to play Nadal]. We have faced each other three times. There have been two good battles and the first one is better not to remember.

“It is a good preparation for Indian Wells to see what we have to improve, where our level is and to continue learning from it.”

The first time Alcaraz and Nadal met competitively was a chastening experience for the then 19-year-old , as he went down 6-1, 6-2 at the 2021 Madrid Open, overawed by both the occasion and the prospect of facing one of his childhood idols.

I don’t see failure or frustration in what happened after Wimbledon

Carlos Alcaraz on not winning a title since Wimbledon last summer

Alcaraz also lost their second encounter at Indian Wells the following year, but pushed Nadal close in a gripping three-setter, before avenging that first defeat by overcoming the 14-time Roland-Garros champion in the Spanish capital in what was a seminal moment in men’s tennis.

“We have not met much on the circuit, but I have seen him a lot on TV. I have grown up watching him play,” Alcaraz continued.

“Any personal experience with him has been incredible. I would have loved to share more time with Rafa. I try to enjoy every day that I do meet and cross paths with him, and learn as much as possible.”

The current world No 2 has endured a difficult start to 2024, falling in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, before a surprise loss to Nicolas Jarry in Buenos Aires and then a rolled ankle in Brazil curtailed his time on the South American ‘Golden Swing’.

alcaraz unfazed by whispers of concern around his form

Some critics have pointed to Alcaraz’s lack of a title since his stunning victory at Wimbledon last summer as a possible cause for concern.

But the double Grand Slam champion is not too worried.

“The American tour I did after Wimbledon wasn’t bad at all,” he said.

“What happens is that people think if you don’t win titles it’s bad – and it’s not like that. I made a few quarter-finals at Masters 1000 events, the final in Cincinnati with Djokovic and then the US Open semi-finals.

“I don’t see failure and frustration in what happened after Wimbledon. I have to learn from those experiences and from those moments.”

Following two highly successful ‘Sunshine Double’ campaigns in the past couple of years, Alcaraz will be hoping his time in California and then Miami will once again help to kickstart another excellent season.

Before that, however, he will face an intriguing test of both his physical state and his game when he comes up against Nadal in Las Vegas, someone who will be testing the waters of his own physicality.

It will be a friendlier affair than any high-stakes meeting at tour level, but one that may provide some much-anticipated answers to important questions for both men.

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