Juan Carlos Ferrero has sparked interest by saying he expects to come back to the tennis circuit in 2027, though he would not reveal the player involved.

Ferrero, who worked with Alcaraz for years before their split at the end of the 2026 season, has been away from tennis since then. Speaking to Movistar+, he said: “This year I’m very calm, enjoying my family and preparing for what’s coming next year. I think I’m going to return to the tennis circuit, but I can’t say with whom.”

The remark has prompted speculation about possible destinations, and one name that has repeatedly surfaced is Rafael Jodar. The young Spaniard has been one of the breakout players on the ATP Tour this season, climbing as high as world No 11. He is still coached only by his father, although he has indicated that he may begin assembling a wider coaching team ahead of the 2027 season.

Just hours after Ferrero’s comments, Jodar again discussed the arrangement he has with his father over the 2025 season. In an interview with Eurosport Spain, Jodar said: “The fact that my father is alone in the pit box is unusual on the circuit, as most players have many people in their pit boxes.

“It’s true that it’s the first year, and we’re trying to learn from every mistake we make and from what works, so we can do the same thing next year or learn from our errors. This year it’s working; things are going very well. We get along very well.

“He’s with me practically every week and travels with me. I know it’s not easy living with someone every week, but we get along very well. We’ve had a very good relationship since I was very little, and he’s always helped me a lot and always wants the best for me. That’s the most important thing.”

Ferrero’s coaching resume also includes Alexander Zverev between 2017 and 2018, a partnership that produced one Masters title. His best-known work remains with Carlos Alcaraz, which brought six Grand Slam titles.

Jodar now turns to Spain’s Davis Cup tie against Chile, where he is set to make his debut between September 19th and 20th. The winner will advance to the Davis Cup Finals in Bologna, Italy at the end of the year, adding significance to his first appearance.

The 2026 US Open has drawn criticism on several fronts, but the schedule has become one of the loudest complaints. With night sessions regularly stretching beyond midnight at Flushing Meadows, questions over player welfare have intensified after Ben Shelton and Carlos Alcaraz played a quarter-final that ended several hours later than expected.

Shelton did not secure his place in the semi-finals until 03:33, a finish that many viewed as impossible to defend from a health perspective. The late hour has renewed frustration around how the tournament structures its marquee matches and whether the current system can realistically be sustained.

John Lloyd, long outspoken about the demands of the tennis calendar, offered a sharp rebuke of the event’s handling of the issue. Speaking on the Inside-In Tennis podcast, he argued that repeatedly finishing after midnight is incompatible with a workable product.

“It’s total utter nonsense. They keep saying, ‘Well, what are we going to do about it?’ There’s only one thing. You can’t have a product that finishes past midnight regularly. You cannot, it cannot work that way,” said Lloyd on the Inside-In Tennis podcast.

He added that moving the start time earlier is not a simple fix, given the unpredictability of afternoon matches and the demands of best-of-five-set contests.

“And you can’t start the matches any earlier because you don’t know what the afternoon matches are going to be like. When you’ve got best of five set matches, it’s unpredictable.

“And today’s best of five, it’s only going to get more and more because the physicality of these players, the match is going to go longer and longer and the everyone keeps saying, well, is there a way we can do something?

“Yes, you have a men’s best of three and a women’s best of three case. You can’t put two women’s on because the matches will you won’t have enough matches to go through the second week if you do that. And so, you know, a best of three set men’s and a best of three set women’s.”

Lloyd also said fans would accept a shorter format and dismissed the idea that longer matches are what make the sport compelling.

“That’s three hours minimum of tennis. That’s plenty. Why does tennis have to have five or six hours to make people happy? It’s nonsense. It’s total nonsense,” he said.

“And then the other argument is saying that it separates the men from the boys. Again, that’s nonsense. If that was the case, then the top players wouldn’t be winning the Masters Series.

“And the vast majority of the time when they’re focused, they do win it because the best players will win no matter what. They will come through.”

The issue was underlined by the numbers as well, with 25 matches in the men’s draw going the full five sets this year.

Carlos Alcaraz may not have defended his US Open crown, but he emerged from New York without any setback, which was the primary concern after a long spell away from competition.

The 23-year-old’s run ended in the quarter-finals after a demanding five-set defeat to Ben Shelton, who produced a major effort in a match that finished at around 3.30am. Shelton came through 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) in a contest that pushed both players to the limit.

For Alcaraz, the significance of the tournament went beyond the result. It was his first event back after more than four months sidelined by a wrist injury, and simply getting through the event healthy represented an important step in his recovery and return.

After the loss, Alcaraz made clear that he viewed the week in positive terms. He said, “I leave the court happy. I leave the court with a smile. I am proud of myself, how I fought. As I said before the tournament began, my expectation was to go there, compete, play these kind of matches, be healthy.”

He later added, “ I’m eager to get back home, to train, to compete, and in the end, this is what we’ve been missing, and getting back home healthy is the most important thing.”

Rennae Stubbs has since spoken about the Spaniard’s condition and mindset as he looks ahead to the rest of his 2026 season. Speaking on The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, she said, “He [Alcaraz] ran out of gas. I actually had a little text with him a couple of days after and he said the arm was really good. So that’s really positive for him. But he was knackered. He hadn’t played a five set match in four months.

“Did you see the face that he had when he walked off the court smiling? You know, everyone walks off that court, they’ve either got a towel over their head or they’re like pouting or they’re like throwing rackets or whatever.

“This guy walks off with a smile on his face. He just he’s so happy just to be healthy. And he loved every second of that warrior battle till 3.30 in the morning. If you don’t like Carlos Alcaraz, I’m sorry. We can’t be friends. Because this guy is the best.”

Alcaraz is next due at the Laver Cup later this month, before heading to the Japan Open. How often he plays after that remains to be seen.