Carlos Alcaraz arrived in Rotterdam on Friday and immediately started practicing to be ready for his debut in the prestigious ATP 500, in which he will participate for the first time in his career. His first opponent will be local idol Botic van de Zandschulp, who defeated him in the second round of the 2024 US Open and who will be able to play with nothing to lose.
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The 4-time Grand Slam champion is quite vulnerable on this surface, where his tennis is not as effective and where he feels less confident in his means. The former world number 1 chose to play the tournaments in Rotterdam and Doha in February also for this reason, wanting to improve his level in indoor conditions and face top-tier opponents.
His great rival Jannik Sinner was also supposed to be present in Rotterdam to defend the title he won last year, but he preferred to rest after winning the Australian Open for the second time in a row.
The 21-year-old from Murcia is the top favorite, but there are three other Top 10 players of the caliber of Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Alex de Minaur.
Alcaraz waits at the airport
In the last few hours, the image of Alcaraz who - after arriving at Rotterdam airport - waits for his luggage for over an hour due to a delay like normal passengers has gone viral on social media.
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As reported by the well-known journalist Manuel Sanchez, Carlitos has been offered several times to sign a partnership with a private jet company to be used to reach tournaments more easily but has always refused.
The Spanish ace was accompanied to Rotterdam by Samuel Lopez, who will also accompany him to Doha in the second half of this month.
Lopez who had already helped Carlos in the past officially joined Alcaraz's team earlier this year to allow Juan Carlos Ferrero to spend more time with his family.
The offer was too tempting and Samuel had to stop his long collaboration with Pablo Carreno Busta.
