ATP Player News

How Carlos Alcaraz’s parents shaped his journey from Murcia to the top of the sport

Alcaraz credits his parents’ values and family life for shaping his rise to the top and focus daily.

Published

1 day ago

September 7, 2025

Carlos Alcaraz’s rapid ascent was built on natural talent and a family environment rooted in tennis. Tipped from a young age to be a special player, he made his ATP Tour main draw debut at 16 in February 2020 and captured his maiden singles title the following year. The 2022 campaign announced him to the world: four titles in the first half of the season, including two ATP Masters 1000 trophies, and a first Grand Slam at the US Open in September. On the back of that success he became the first teenager to top the ATP Rankings and the youngest player to finish the year as world No 1.

Born on 5 May 2003 in El Palmar, Murcia, Spain, Alcaraz is the son of Carlos Alcaraz Gonzalez and Virginia Garfia Escandon and has three brothers: an older brother, Alvaro, and two younger brothers, Sergio and Jaime. His father is a former professional player who reached a career-high of No 963 in 1990 and later worked as a tennis academy director at the Real Sociedad Club de Campo de Murcia. Young Carlos began playing at that same club “as soon as he could hold a racket.” One of his early coaches recalled that even at four or five years old he showed extraordinary promise: “He began to play with his dad, and one day [his father] asked me to watch him. This kid, at four, five years old, was spectacular,” Kiko Navarro, one of Alcaraz Jr’s early coaches, told the Guardian. “I knew from very young that he was incredible. I’m not going to say that I was thinking he was going to be world No 1 but I knew that I had a really good and different player on my hands.”

Carlos Alcaraz Gonzalez has run the Carlos Alcaraz Tennis Academy by Reina at the Tiro de Pichón for nearly three decades and has become a major sponsor since his son’s rise. Virginia Garfia has generally kept a low profile but has attended several high-profile matches, including the 2024 US Open final win over Casper Ruud, the 2024 French Open victory over Alexander Zverev and the Wimbledon title runs in 2023 and 2024; she was notably seen celebrating after the 2023 semi-final win over Daniil Medvedev. In a 2022 interview Carlos said: “Obviously, my parents control the money for me. To buy some golf clubs, which I love; I don’t ask permission, but for a good car, yes. I’m still fighting it.
“My father is tougher and my mother less, so to go out and those things I tell my mother. I don’t have time as such, but they always tell me ‘don’t be late’. As much as I try not to make any noise when I get home, they always wake up and catch me.” In the Netflix documentary Carlos Alcaraz: My Way, released in early 2025, he revealed he still lives with his parents and that his mother’s cooking is “another reason why I like to be at home”. His brother Alcaro added: “He really is a family guy. he loved being with his childhood friends at the party because it’s when he’s the most relaxed and can really be himself.
“Please know that no matter how famous you decide you want to be, that you’ll always be my little brother and I’ll slap you over the head if you get all full of yourself.”

Analytics & Stats ATP Finals

Race to Turin Tightens: Alcaraz Leading as Field Narrows

Alcaraz leads Race to Turin after US Open; Djokovic, Zverev and Auger-Aliassime contend. strong duel.

Published

9 hours ago

September 8, 2025

IN Tennis Times

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the only players who have secured places at the ATP Finals in Turin. Alcaraz qualified on July 8 after finishing runner-up at Wimbledon and Sinner clinched his spot on August 8. Alcaraz holds a commanding 2,590-point lead over Sinner following his US Open title run, making him the clear favourite to claim top-seed status.

With the Race to Turin cutoff sitting at 5,395 points, six places remain open. Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev are closing in and each need another 1,215 points to qualify. It remains to be seen if Djokovic will play should he qualify as he opted to skip the ATP Finals last year despite being the defending champion.

Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz, Alex de Minaur and Lorenzo Musetti currently occupy the other spots inside the top eight. Those ranked ninth and 10th after the regular ATP Tour season will travel to Italy as alternates. Jack Draper slipped out of the top eight after withdrawing from the US Open due to injury.

Felix Auger-Aliassime has moved up eight places to No 10 following his run to the US Open semi-final. He sits 365 points behind Musetti in eighth and is within reach alongside Shelton, Fritz and de Minaur.

Two ATP Masters 1000 tournaments remain before the Finals, with the Shanghai Masters next on the calendar and the Paris Masters at the end of October. Contenders can also earn significant points at ATP 500 events, notably the China Open, Japan Open, Swiss Indoors and Vienna Open.

Current Race to Turin standings (selected): 1. Carlos Alcaraz 10,540 points 2. Jannik Sinner 7,950 3. Novak Djokovic 4,180 (+2) 4. Alexander Zverev 4,180 (-1) 5. Ben Shelton 3,710 (-1) 6. Taylor Fritz 3,465 7. Alex de Minaur 3,145 (+1) 8. Lorenzo Musetti 3,070 (+1)

Also in contention: 9. Jack Draper 2,990 (-2) 10. Felix Auger-Aliassime 2,705 (+8) 11. Andrey Rublev 2,410 12. Casper Ruud 2,285 (-2) 13. Karen Khachanov 2,210 (-1) 14. Holger Rune 2,190 (-1) 15. Alexander Bublik 2,145 (+2).

Analytics & Stats ATP

Alcaraz Reclaims No 1 After US Open Triumph as Rankings Shake Up

Alcaraz returns to world No 1 after US Open win; Sinner drops to No 2, major ranking shifts. Today.

Published

12 hours ago

September 8, 2025

IN Tennis Times

Carlos Alcaraz returned to the summit of the ATP Rankings after his victory over Jannik Sinner in the US Open final, a result that produced a notable reshuffle through the top 100. In a winner-takes-all match at Flushing Meadows, Alcaraz defeated the defending champion and reigning No 1 Sinner 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to claim his sixth Grand Slam and move back to world No 1 for the first time since September 2023.

Alcaraz started his fifth spell as No 1 on Monday, taking his total weeks at the top to 37. Sinner fell to No 2 after 65 consecutive weeks leading the rankings. Alcaraz sits 15th on the all-time list for weeks at No 1 while Sinner is 12th. The Spaniard leads Sinner by 760 points and holds a clear advantage in the points he must defend for the rest of the year: Alcaraz will drop only 1,000 points, while Sinner faces 2,830 to defend after winning the Shanghai Masters and the ATP Finals last year.

Alexander Zverev remains third but trails Sinner by 4,850 points. Novak Djokovic rose three places to No 4 after reaching the semi-final in New York, with a slender 155-point gap separating him from Taylor Fritz in fifth. Jack Draper slipped two places after withdrawing from the US Open following his first-round win. Lorenzo Musetti rose one place to No 9 after reaching the quarter-finals.

Felix Auger-Aliassime climbed 14 spots to No 13 following his semi-final run, one place ahead of Jiri Lehecka (+5). Alexander Bublik moved up five places to No 19 and sits one spot ahead of Daniil Medvedev, who lost in the first round and dropped five places. Francis Tiafoe fell 12 places to No 29 after a third-round exit. Joao Fonseca reached a career-high No 41 (+3) after making the third round.

Kamil Majchrzak became the new Polish No 1, replacing Hubert Hurkacz, jumping 14 places to No 62 after a third-round run. Leandro Riedi surged 268 places to No 167 after qualifying and reaching the fourth round. Coleman Wong became the first man from Hong Kong to qualify for a major main draw in the Open Era and reached the third round, jumping 25 places to No 148.

Current top 20 (points):
1. Carlos Alcaraz Spain – 11,540 points (+1)
2. Jannik Sinner Italy – 10,780 (-1)
3. Alexander Zverev Germany – 5,930
4. Novak Djokovic Serbia – 4,830 (+3)
5. Taylor Fritz United States – 4,675 (-1)
6. Ben Shelton United States – 4,280
7. Jack Draper Great Britain – 3,690 (-2)
8. Alex de Minaur Australia – 3,545
9. Lorenzo Musetti Italy – 3,505 (+1)
10. Karen Khachanov – 3,280 (-1)
11. Holger Rune Denmark – 3,090
12. Casper Ruud Norway – 2,755
13. Felix Auger-Aliassime Canada – 2,755 (+14)
14. Andrey Rublev – 2,610 (+1)
15. Tommy Paul United States – 2,510 (-1)
16. Jiri Lehecka Czech Republic – 2,415 (+5)
17. Jakub Mensik Czech Republic – 2,380 (-1)
18. Daniil Medvedev – 2,370 (-5)
19. Alexander Bublik Kazakhstan – 2,245 (+5)
20. Alejandro Davidovic Fokina Spain – 2,225 (-2)

Analytics & Stats ATP WTA

Post–US Open rankings: Anisimova rises to No. 4 as Alcaraz returns to No. 1

Amanda Anisimova rises to a career-high No. 4 after US Open final; Alcaraz regains No. 1 spot. 2025.

Published

13 hours ago

September 8, 2025

IN Tennis Times

Amanda Anisimova moved to a career-high No. 4 in the WTA rankings after reaching the US Open final, leaping from No. 9 to No. 4. Her prior career-best had been No. 7. Anisimova also sits fourth on the Race to the WTA Finals and has a strong chance to qualify for the season-ending event.

“Yeah, it was actually a goal of mine in the start of the year,” she told reporters on Saturday, after the final. “Me and my agent, we were joking about that, that that would be a goal of mine, and it was kind of far in reach when I was starting off the year, but now I have a chance to qualify and play in it, so that’s really special.”

Anisimova began 2025 at No. 36. Her biggest ranking jumps this year included a rise from No. 41 to No. 18 in February after winning the first WTA 1000 title of her career in Doha, and a jump from No. 14 to No. 7 in July following her run to the Wimbledon final. She is one of only two women to reach multiple Grand Slam finals in 2025, alongside Aryna Sabalenka, who defeated her in the US Open final.

On the ATP side, Carlos Alcaraz returned to No. 1 after capturing his second Grand Slam title of the year and the sixth major of his career at the US Open. Alcaraz moved from No. 2 to No. 1, swapping places with Jannik Sinner after defeating him in four sets in the final. He begins his 37th career week at the top of the rankings.

Several other notable moves followed the tournament. Novak Djokovic rose from No. 7 to No. 4 after reaching the US Open semifinals, his fourth straight Grand Slam semifinal and his highest ranking of the year; the last time he was No. 4 was last November. Felix Auger-Aliassime climbed from No. 27 to No. 13 after his second Grand Slam semifinal in New York; he is a former No. 6. Naomi Osaka re-entered the Top 20, advancing from No. 24 to No. 14 after her semifinal run, her highest ranking since she was No. 14 for two weeks at the 2022 Australian Open.