Alcaraz Sets Sights on Queen's

Carlos Alcaraz already has his next challenge in mind: Wimbledon. The Murcian, after his well-deserved vacation, will arrive in London this Saturday and begin a four-week journey he hopes to culminate with a third title at the All England Club on July 13.

Alcaraz has spent the last few days in Ibiza, surrounded by friends and taking a break from tennis. He will land in the English capital on Saturday morning, where he will immediately start his training at Queen's Club, his first stop before Wimbledon.

In this ATP 500, a direct precursor to Wimbledon and a tournament with courts most similar to those at the All England Club, Alcaraz won the title in 2023. However, last year he fell in the second round to Britain's Jack Draper. The Netflix documentary 'My Way', released a few months ago, attributed the early defeat to Draper to the excesses of Ibiza, but these vacations ended up being crucial for the Murcian to claim the most important prize of the grass tour, Wimbledon.

Therefore, it was accepted with normalcy that he repeated the routine this year and, once he conquered Roland Garros in a spectacular final, one of the best in history, against Jannik Sinner, he put his racket aside and enjoyed the Ibiza party with his friends.

Moreover, the Murcian has hinted at the care he has taken these days, posting photos training alongside Borja Couce, agent of Sergio Reguilón, a good friend of Alcaraz who accompanied him in Ibiza, and Luka Modric.

Wimbledon, which this year will award 3.5 million euros to the champion, the largest prize in Grand Slam history, is Alcaraz's opportunity to become, alongside Björn Borg, one of the only men in history to repeat the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double in consecutive years.

Neither Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, who achieved the double only once in their careers, nor Rafa Nadal, who did so in 2008 and 2010, could emulate the feat of the Swede, who also did it in three consecutive seasons, in 1978, 1979, and 1980.

The great summer the Spaniard had in 2024, culminating with a silver medal at the Paris Olympics, will not allow him to add many points to dethrone Sinner in the rankings. The Italian is assured to remain at the top until at least after Wimbledon, as Alcaraz earned nothing at Roland Garros due to his champion status and will not do so at the All England Club for the same reason.

In the best-case scenario, Alcaraz could reduce the current difference (2,030 points) by 900 points, provided he triumphs at Queen's and the Italian does not appear or falls early in Halle, where he defends his title. However, at Wimbledon, Sinner will have the advantage again, as in 2024 he only reached the quarter-finals, giving him plenty of room for improvement.