Carlos Alcaraz, at the age of 19, became the earliest number one in history after winning his first Grand Slam title at the US Open on September 11.
Only Pete Sampras had ever been crowned younger in New York in the Open Era.
“It’s crazy for me. I never thought I was going to achieve something like this at such a young age. It’s all come so fast. It’s something I’ve dreamed of since I was a kid”, confessed the player from El Palmar in words reported by ATP.
In Rio de Janeiro, where he won his first ATP victory in 2020, after defeating fellow Spaniard Albert Ramos, he also became the earliest Spaniard to win a 500 tournament, and he went on to win in Miami, something no Spaniard had ever done before. He also set the record for the youngest winner there.
The triumph in Barcelona placed him in the top 10. The culmination of the campaign was when he received the trophy on November 16, at the Alpitour in Turin, which accredited him as the youngest leader at the end of the year and the second Spaniard to achieve it after Rafael Nadal.
Just 16 days earlier he had lifted the trophy as the 28th player to reach the top of the tennis rankings since the introduction of the ranking in 1973.
Rising through the rankings
In a year that began in 32nd position and in which he planned to finish close to 15th, he finished ahead of the rest with a rise that earned him the ATP’s highest progression award.
The Spaniard scored 6,820 points, which will ensure him a reign of at least 20 weeks, equalling the record of Sweden’s Mats Wilander.
“It means a lot to me to finish number one because it makes me part of tennis history alongside many legends,” he says.
Carlos was able to finish first, ahead of his compatriot Nadal, despite dropping out in the Bercy quarter-finals due to an abdominal tear that also prevented him from playing in his first Masters event.
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