Playing Nadal is 'kind of a nightmare', says Alcaraz / Photo: CARL DE SOUZA - AFP
-
Thailand begins extradition process against Chinese journalist
-
Alex Bodi pushes ahead with expansion: ALIX LASERS showroom planned for Bucharest
-
Quarantine, unease and rumours: Russian city grapples with plague scare
-
Fossil fuels off COP31 agenda as global output keeps rising
-
Taiwan says exports hit record in September on AI demand
-
Haze not 'a threat' to Singapore F1 race: organisers
-
Marc Marquez vows to 'attack' Martin's lead at Indonesian MotoGP
-
COP31 organisers say to seek 'ambitious' action with their text
-
Diplomats, schools in Saudi take safety measures after blasts heard: sources to AFP
-
Bartunkova thrashes Muchova to reach China Open semi-finals
-
In Beijing, EU trade envoy says deficit with China 'unsustainable'
-
Drone hits Yandex data centre, in first such attack on Russia
-
Sri Lanka's de Silva quits as Test captain
-
Oil prices surge and stocks sink on fresh inflation worries
-
Alcaraz feeling 'mentally fresh' ahead of Shanghai return
-
AI startup Manus raises $500m after Meta acquisition blocked by China
-
Israel drastically reduces British diplomatic presence in Jerusalem
-
From refuge to repatriations: Malaysia's Myanmar U-turn
-
Stocks fall further as oil surge fans fresh inflation worries
-
Morikawa says LIV players face 'business decision' after Rahm exit
-
North Korea demands South show 'utmost respect' to restore relations
-
Tenzing Norgay's son says Himalayas sending climate warning
-
Saudi says three dead in airport attacks claimed by Houthis
-
On your bike! Bottas opts for two wheels to reach Singapore GP
-
'Mad dream': New showcase for African film opens in London
-
Alcaraz, Sinner, Osaka commit to Australian Open '1 Point Slam'
-
All Blacks coach Rennie says Wallabies exit 'part of the game'
-
Dodgers beat Braves to advance in MLB playoffs, Rays oust Yankees
-
The growing protests against India's poll body - and PM Modi
-
'A sun as black as my lungs': how corruption crucified a polluted Albania city
-
Stocks fall further as oil spike fans fresh inflation worries
-
The British historian helping the French rediscover de Gaulle
-
Bad COP, worse COP? EU tempers hopes for UN climate summit
-
Dodgers beat Braves to advance, Guardians survive in MLB playoffs
-
Rookie Henry named in Wallabies midfield to face All Blacks
-
Latin American, Caribbean women top Nobel literature buzz
-
Housing crisis set to dominate Spain's snap election
-
US says Fiji-based Chinese official paid bribes for Beijing
-
Gas, health care, utilities: high costs squeeze US midterm voters
-
After botched US execution, Christa Pike was nearly taken off life support
-
New Zealand Rugby seeks injunction over PNG Chiefs name
-
Guinea-Bissau junta urges military unit loyal to ex-president to disarm
-
Samsung expects 780% quarterly operating profit jump on AI boom
-
Zomedica Announces "Fourth Friday at Four" Webinar on October 23, 2026: Zomedica's Clinical Program: How Evidence Drives Adoption
-
Housing Innovation Alliance and HUD Partner to Advance Housing Innovation Through National Design-Build Challenge
-
Battery X Metals Announces Corporate Awareness Agreement
-
MBA Search Fund Alliance Launches Anonymous Discord Community, Begins Fall ETA Club Outreach
-
Silver Range Resources Ltd. Options Alamo and Sand Springs to Resilience Minerals Limited
-
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC Announces Transaction in Own Shares - October 08
-
As species decline, green turtles offer glimmer of hope
Playing Nadal is 'kind of a nightmare', says Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz has admitted to being starstruck when he first faced Rafael Nadal, saying that facing the 22-time Grand Slam champion was "kind of a nightmare".
Speaking in Berlin on Thursday ahead of the Laver Cup, the 21-year-old Alcaraz reflected on his on-court battles with fellow Spaniard Nadal.
"It was a huge thing when I played him for the first time," said the world number three. "The other times for me were kind of a nightmare."
Alcaraz already has four Grand Slam titles, winning his first at the 2022 US Open in the same year Nadal won his most recent major at the French Open.
Nadal, 38, was set to take the court alongside Alcaraz in Berlin, but pulled out due to his continued struggles with injury.
"Playing against Rafa is always tough. Every time for me it was a privilege to share the court," added Alcaraz.
"Every time I faced him, I tried to be a good enough player to beat him."
There was speculation Nadal may retire from the sport at the Laver Cup, as great rival Roger Federer had done two years ago, but he is set to continue.
Alcaraz will play doubles alongside German Alexander Zverev for Team Europe at the tournament, with their first clash coming against Americans Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton for Team World.
Preparing to play on home soil, Zverev said of Alcaraz: "It's a privilege to share the court with a legend of our sport already."
The two have clashed three times in 2024, including in the French Open final, which Alcaraz won in five sets.
"I think it's amazing to hear my teammates call me a tennis legend, but I try not to think about it," said Alcaraz.
"Above all, what makes you a legend in tennis is what you contribute to the sport and how you try and take tennis to the top, to be heard in every corner of the world.
"To attract the largest possible audience, to people who have never seen tennis in their lives, thanks to you they watch it on TV or start to play, that makes you a legend, apart from the tournaments you have won and the success you have."
Team Europe won the first four Laver Cups, starting in 2017, but Team World have won the past two.
O.Johnson--AMWN
