Boris Becker sends good wishes to Carlos Alcaraz ahead of Spaniard's first tournament in 2023
Carlos Alcaraz received a message of support in the form of good wishes from Boris Becker, ahead of the Spaniard's much-awaited comeback to the tour. Alcaraz has not played since the Paris Masters in November, marking the upcoming Argentina Open as his first tournament of the 2023 season.
Alcaraz, who was the World No. 1 for four months before Novak Djokovic took over the top spot by winning the 2023 Australian Open, suffered an abdominal injury in Paris that later ended his 2022 season. As he geared up for the Australian Open, the 19-year-old faced another setback in the form of a right leg injury.
With Alcaraz now finally fit and raring to go in Buenos Aires this coming week, German tennis great Boris Becker wished good luck upon the reigning US Open champion.
"Good luck with your comeback," Boris Becker wrote on Instagram, reacting to Alcaraz's pre-tournament post.
You can see Alcaraz's original post below, which he captioned,
"Intense day! Training and Media Day!"
The world No. 2 lost in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Paris Masters, his last tournament on tour, as he retired just a couple of points into a second-set tiebreak against Holger Rune with a nagging abdominal injury. His last title on tour was the 2022 US Open, the Spanish youngster's maiden Grand Slam title.
"I'm not afraid, it doesn't matter who's in front of me" - Carlos Alcaraz lays down marker ahead of comeback
Carlos Alcaraz exuded confidence ahead of his tour-level comeback at the Argentina Open this coming week, stating that he is not afraid of any player on the ATP tour. He feels that courage is among his biggest strengths and has been key to his great success at a very young age. Alcaraz also said that he "takes it naturally" to face the best players on tour.
"The courage with which I play. I'm not afraid, it doesn't matter who's in front of me," Alcaraz said, as per Marca. "That has been basic to achieve what I've already achieved.
"I've always taken it naturally to face the best. That ambition has made me be who I am right now," the Spaniard added.
Alcaraz, who is the top seed at the Argentina Open, is set to begin his campaign in the Round of 16 on Wednesday, facing the winner of the match between Fabio Fognini and Laslo Djere. He could then face sixth seed Sebastian Baez in the quarterfinals, with second seed Cameron Norrie looming large in the bottom half of the draw.