With Wimbledon trophy in his living room for motivation, Alcaraz arrives in Toronto after crazy year

The Spaniard opens his Toronto campaign against countryman Bernabe Zapata Miralles or rising American Ben Shelton after a first round bye

Carlos Alcaraz in Toronto in 2023 Image Credit: Zuma / Panoramic

Haresh Ramchandani

August 6, 2023

World No 1 Carlos Alcaraz arrives in Toronto for the National Bank Open having yet to win a match at this ATP Masters 1000 Series event. The Spaniard lost his opening match to Tommy Paul in last year (when the tournament was held in Montreal) and will be hoping to do better this year when he begins his campaign as the top seed against either countryman Bernabe Zapata Miralles or rising American Ben Shelton.

Alcaraz is making sure he uses all sources of motivation as he begins his American summer hardcourt campaign, revealing to the media on Saturday that he has placed his Wimbledon trophy in his living room back home because it is something he does not want to forget.

Getting in the reps! 🏋️‍♂️

The top two seeds are out putting in the work ahead of @NBOtoronto @carlosalcaraz @DaniilMedwed #NBO23 pic.twitter.com/3uMjbTDciP
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 5, 2023

“I have the trophy in my living room over there (so) that every time that I have lunch, have dinner with my family, I see the trophy,” Alcaraz said as quoted by the ATP Tour. “It’s something that I (don’t want) to forget. I had just a week to think about it. I had not too much time. And I think I needed a little bit more because it’s something that is crazy to realise.”

“Honestly, for me, winning Wimbledon at 20 years old is something that I dreamed about when I started playing tennis. It was my fourth tournament on grass, so it was totally unexpected. So for me, it’s a great achievement and it’s something that I have to take some time to think about.”

For me, winning Wimbledon at 20 years old is something that I dreamed about when I started playing tennis.
Carlos Alcaraz

The Spaniard says he still finds it hard to believe that he has become a two-time Grand Slam champion at such a young age but added that he has worked hard to get to where he is.

“I know that everything came so fast. Great tournaments, two Grand Slams, and I’m just 20 years old. I know that I’m so young,” the 20-year-old said. “It’s something that I worked to be in this position to fight for great things. But you never realise until you’ve done it. There (are) some times that I think about the last point of the US Open, the last point of Wimbledon and other great tournaments that I won and I still can’t believe it and still get goosebumps, so it’s crazy.”