Latest news with #CarlosMoya
Malay Mail
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Malay Mail
Reign of tennis' ‘Big Three' unlikely to be repeated, says former world No. 1 Moya
PARIS, May 25 — Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic dominated tennis for the best part of two decades but it is debatable whether Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner can emulate that, Nadal's former coach Carlos Moya told AFP. World number one Sinner, 23, and the 22-year-old Alcaraz have garnered seven Grand Slam titles already between them. By comparison Nadal, Federer — both of whom have retired — and Djokovic, a trio known as the 'Big Three', swept up 66 from 2003 to 2023. Alcaraz and Sinner are gearing up for the French Open with the former the defending champion. 'To achieve what these guys have been doing these last 15, 20 years, that's something that I don't know if we are going to see in the future,' Moya, a former world number one and 1998 French Open champion, told AFP from Mallorca. 'I can tell that in the next couple of years, this rivalry is going to be there. 'Then maybe five years, seven, but so many things can happen. 'Injuries and family problems. Mental health issues, you don't know what's going to happen in three, four, five years' time.' Moya, who will return to Roland Garros on Sunday as organisers pay tribute to record 14-time French Open singles champion Nadal, said rivalry was key to the longevity of the sport's three most successful men's players of all time. 'They pushed each other to the limit,' said the 48-year-old Spaniard. 'Without the other guys, Rafa, maybe he would have retired four or five years ago with 16, 18 Grand Slams.' Moya achieved a lot in his career but he said he was in awe of that trio. 'My ambition was never to be one of the best players ever because I didn't have the level to dream about that,' he said. 'I mean, my dream was to win a Slam, to become number one, but was never to win multiple Grand Slams or being number one for a few years. 'With these guys, it's a different game. 'I mean, their ambition is unbelievable and how mentally stressful is that what they're doing? It's something that people are not aware of.' 'Fake news' Moya and Nadal's relationship goes back decades but the older Spaniard said his role when he joined the team in 2016 was to strike a balance between being a coach and a friend. 'I knew him so well,' said Moya. 'I knew him since he was 11 years old. I could know what was going through his mind, how he was feeling.' Moya said there were the highs of 'eight Grand Slams' but also the 'difficult moments' of 'hard losses in Grand Slam finals' and injuries. 'When he's going through that, I mean, you have to be supporting him. 'You have to be his friend. You have to be the person he can talk to.' Nadal hanging up his racquet last November put Moya back on the market but he says he is not ready to return to the grind of the tour. 'To be on the tour, in my opinion, you have to be 100% ready for that mentally,' he said. 'I didn't feel I had the energy and also after being with Rafa, it's hard to be back on the tour again with another player.' As for a story linking him with Sinner, Moya said it was 'fake news'. 'As soon as there is something new in my life, I will announce that myself. 'I will not wait for a random Russian website to decide what I'm going to do,' he added. Moya has retained his ties with tennis as he is a team captain for the Legends Team Cup, pitting his wits against Australia's Mark Philippoussis and American James Blake. Each has a five-man roster — Moya's includes 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem — which will face each other twice with prize money of US$1 million (RM4.23 million) at each event. The top two teams progress to the final with a US$5 million prize and the Bjorn Borg Trophy at stake. For Moya, it is ideal as he says it is like going from being a football club coach to being in charge of a national team, removing the daily pressure. It means he can devote his time to his wife and three children. 'My kids are 14, 12 and 11,' he said. 'I'm enjoying the time I'm spending with them, before you know it they're going to be 18 and they probably fly away from home.' — AFP
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Carlos Alcaraz shows signs of Rafael Nadal's ‘killer instinct' as he prepares for French Open title defense
If an 18th birthday is supposed to be a momentous, coming-of-age occasion, then Carlos Alcaraz got the memo. In front of a home crowd in Madrid, the then-up-and-coming tennis star braced himself to face one of the game's great players for the first time. Alcaraz had spent his whole childhood idolizing Rafael Nadal. To face the legendary Spaniard on his favored clay surface produced a cocktail of emotions: excitement, exhilaration, but also deep-seated terror. Advertisement 'I was so scared,' Alcaraz has since said about that moment. 'I couldn't play. His presence, the atmosphere that you feel – it's unbelievable.' For Nadal's camp, those nerves were plain to see. Carlos Moyá, the long-time former coach to the 22-time grand slam singles champion, could sense it from the stands – a young player suddenly overawed and overwhelmed by his opponent. Yet despite the lopsided scoreline – Nadal romped to a 6-1, 6-2 victory on the Madrid clay – Moyá was also impressed by the young Spaniard on the other side of the net. 'You could see that he was special,' the former world No. 1 tells CNN Sports. 'He had all the shots … drop shots or volleys or running, it was great to watch.' Advertisement Four years on from that match, Alcaraz's raw talent has come to fruition. He's now a four-time grand slam champion and the favorite to defend his French Open title when the tournament gets underway on Sunday – an event that Nadal has dominated for the past two decades. Though seeded second behind Italy's Jannik Sinner, who is making a return from a doping suspension, Alcaraz defeated his rival in the final of the Italian Open last week. Prior to that, he won the Monto-Carlo Masters and reached the final of the Barcelona Open before losing to Holger Rune. Alcaraz serves against Jannik Sinner in the final of the Italian Open. -When he returns to Roland Garros to face veteran Japanese player Kei Nishikori in the first round, Alcaraz will do so having won 15 of his 16 clay-court matches this season. Advertisement 'He is 22, so he has a bright present and bright future ahead of him, and he has all the tools to keep winning slams,' says Moyá, adding: 'You don't know what can happen in five years, eight, 10, I don't know, but for sure, he has three, four, five years ahead of him that he can win slams. 'I think his game is amazing. And although he can play well everywhere, I think clay is the best surface for him. He has all the shots to do well on clay. And as he proved this last month, winning Monte-Carlo and Rome, he probably is the biggest favorite to win the French Open.' With Alcaraz and Sinner leading the charge in the men's draw, it feels like this year's tournament in Paris is truly the start of a new era. Nadal, an unprecedented 14-time champion on these courts, has called time on his career, and instead will be honored by organizers when play begins on Sunday. Moyá, himself a former French Open champion who coached Nadal to eight grand slam titles, will be there to soak up the tributes to the tournament's favorite son. The chance to acknowledge Nadal's astonishing French Open record – he lost just four of his 116 matches on the Paris Clay – will be bittersweet, a fond but painful parting. Advertisement 'It's going to be a strange feeling for me, but we're going to enjoy it,' says Moyá. 'We enjoyed it so much in the past eight years being with Rafa. He was feeling unbeatable and we always have great memories when we've been there, and also for me because of what happened in '98 (defeating fellow Spaniard Àlex Corretja in the final). 'It's going to be a different feeling, and I don't think I'll watch too much on TV once I'm home because I feel kind of sad not being there. But I wish all the best to all the competitors that are going to be there.' Alcaraz and Nadal post for a photo before their Madrid Open match in 2021. - GonzaloMoyá embraces Nadal at the Davis Cup Finals. - Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Images Indeed, Moyá admits that he hasn't watched a lot of tennis since Nadal bid goodbye to the sport in November. He's yet to take up another full-time coaching post, but has been named a captain for the inaugural Legends Team Cup, a new tour in which 15 not-long-retired players have been drafted into three teams. Advertisement The tournament gets underway on the Caribbean island of St. Barts next month, while Moyá's team – which features 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem, as well as former top-10 players Diego Schwartzman and Fernando Verdasco – will make a first appearance in New York in July. 'During the years I've been with Rafa, (he) played against probably all of them,' says Moyá. 'That's going to help me a little bit. And I hope to give my team the right orders. They are good enough to play even without the captain, but I'll try to help. I'll try to add my experience, and I'm really looking forward to it.' The Legends Team Cup is a timely reminder that, although an elite athlete's body may wane with time, the desire to compete at a high level never fades entirely. 'This is what we have in our blood – try to win whatever it takes,' Moyá adds. 'Sometimes, you miss that competition.' Advertisement That same competitive desire might be reignited briefly when Moyá and Nadal return to the French Open's Court Philippe-Chatrier on Sunday, albeit without the forehands and fireworks that typified Nadal's all-conquering performances on clay. As they soak up the tributes and applause, both will have the chance to see Alcaraz kick-off his title defense, the same nervous teenager who was crushed by his idol just over four years ago. With Nadal in the stands and Alcaraz now the formidable force on the court, it will be hard to escape the sense that one tennis generation is finally giving way to the next. And if there's one thing the two men have in common, for Moyá it boils down to mentality. 'This never-say-die attitude, they both have it,' he says, 'and this killer instinct, they have it.' Nadal built a fortress at the French Open. The time now feels ripe for Alcaraz to forge a legacy of his own. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at
CNN
24-05-2025
- Sport
- CNN
Carlos Alcaraz shows signs of Rafael Nadal's ‘killer instinct' as he prepares for French Open title defense
If an 18th birthday is supposed to be a momentous, coming-of-age occasion, then Carlos Alcaraz got the memo. In front of a home crowd in Madrid, the then-up-and-coming tennis star braced himself to face one of the game's great players for the first time. Alcaraz had spent his whole childhood idolizing Rafael Nadal. To face the legendary Spaniard on his favored clay surface produced a cocktail of emotions: excitement, exhilaration, but also deep-seated terror. 'I was so scared,' Alcaraz has since said about that moment. 'I couldn't play. His presence, the atmosphere that you feel – it's unbelievable.' For Nadal's camp, those nerves were plain to see. Carlos Moyá, the long-time former coach to the 22-time grand slam singles champion, could sense it from the stands – a young player suddenly overawed and overwhelmed by his opponent. Yet despite the lopsided scoreline – Nadal romped to a 6-1, 6-2 victory on the Madrid clay – Moyá was also impressed by the young Spaniard on the other side of the net. 'You could see that he was special,' the former world No. 1 tells CNN Sports. 'He had all the shots … drop shots or volleys or running, it was great to watch.' Four years on from that match, Alcaraz's raw talent has come to fruition. He's now a four-time grand slam champion and the favorite to defend his French Open title when the tournament gets underway on Sunday – an event that Nadal has dominated for the past two decades. Though seeded second behind Italy's Jannik Sinner, who is making a return from a doping suspension, Alcaraz defeated his rival in the final of the Italian Open last week. Prior to that, he won the Monto-Carlo Masters and reached the final of the Barcelona Open before losing to Holger Rune. When he returns to Roland Garros to face veteran Japanese player Kei Nishikori in the first round, Alcaraz will do so having won 15 of his 16 clay-court matches this season. 'He is 22, so he has a bright present and bright future ahead of him, and he has all the tools to keep winning slams,' says Moyá, adding: 'You don't know what can happen in five years, eight, 10, I don't know, but for sure, he has three, four, five years ahead of him that he can win slams. 'I think his game is amazing. And although he can play well everywhere, I think clay is the best surface for him. He has all the shots to do well on clay. And as he proved this last month, winning Monte-Carlo and Rome, he probably is the biggest favorite to win the French Open.' With Alcaraz and Sinner leading the charge in the men's draw, it feels like this year's tournament in Paris is truly the start of a new era. Nadal, an unprecedented 14-time champion on these courts, has called time on his career, and instead will be honored by organizers when play begins on Sunday. Moyá, himself a former French Open champion who coached Nadal to eight grand slam titles, will be there to soak up the tributes to the tournament's favorite son. The chance to acknowledge Nadal's astonishing French Open record – he lost just four of his 116 matches on the Paris Clay – will be bittersweet, a fond but painful parting. 'It's going to be a strange feeling for me, but we're going to enjoy it,' says Moyá. 'We enjoyed it so much in the past eight years being with Rafa. He was feeling unbeatable and we always have great memories when we've been there, and also for me because of what happened in '98 (defeating fellow Spaniard Àlex Corretja in the final). 'It's going to be a different feeling, and I don't think I'll watch too much on TV once I'm home because I feel kind of sad not being there. But I wish all the best to all the competitors that are going to be there.' Indeed, Moyá admits that he hasn't watched a lot of tennis since Nadal bid goodbye to the sport in November. He's yet to take up another full-time coaching post, but has been named a captain for the inaugural Legends Team Cup, a new tour in which 15 not-long-retired players have been drafted into three teams. The tournament gets underway on the Caribbean island of St. Barts next month, while Moyá's team – which features 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem, as well as former top-10 players Diego Schwartzman and Fernando Verdasco – will make a first appearance in New York in July. 'During the years I've been with Rafa, (he) played against probably all of them,' says Moyá. 'That's going to help me a little bit. And I hope to give my team the right orders. They are good enough to play even without the captain, but I'll try to help. I'll try to add my experience, and I'm really looking forward to it.' The Legends Team Cup is a timely reminder that, although an elite athlete's body may wane with time, the desire to compete at a high level never fades entirely. 'This is what we have in our blood – try to win whatever it takes,' Moyá adds. 'Sometimes, you miss that competition.' That same competitive desire might be reignited briefly when Moyá and Nadal return to the French Open's Court Philippe-Chatrier on Sunday, albeit without the forehands and fireworks that typified Nadal's all-conquering performances on clay. As they soak up the tributes and applause, both will have the chance to see Alcaraz kick-off his title defense, the same nervous teenager who was crushed by his idol just over four years ago. With Nadal in the stands and Alcaraz now the formidable force on the court, it will be hard to escape the sense that one tennis generation is finally giving way to the next. And if there's one thing the two men have in common, for Moyá it boils down to mentality. 'This never-say-die attitude, they both have it,' he says, 'and this killer instinct, they have it.' Nadal built a fortress at the French Open. The time now feels ripe for Alcaraz to forge a legacy of his own.
CNN
24-05-2025
- Sport
- CNN
Carlos Alcaraz shows signs of Rafael Nadal's ‘killer instinct' as he prepares for French Open title defense
If an 18th birthday is supposed to be a momentous, coming-of-age occasion, then Carlos Alcaraz got the memo. In front of a home crowd in Madrid, the then-up-and-coming tennis star braced himself to face one of the game's great players for the first time. Alcaraz had spent his whole childhood idolizing Rafael Nadal. To face the legendary Spaniard on his favored clay surface produced a cocktail of emotions: excitement, exhilaration, but also deep-seated terror. 'I was so scared,' Alcaraz has since said about that moment. 'I couldn't play. His presence, the atmosphere that you feel – it's unbelievable.' For Nadal's camp, those nerves were plain to see. Carlos Moyá, the long-time former coach to the 22-time grand slam singles champion, could sense it from the stands – a young player suddenly overawed and overwhelmed by his opponent. Yet despite the lopsided scoreline – Nadal romped to a 6-1, 6-2 victory on the Madrid clay – Moyá was also impressed by the young Spaniard on the other side of the net. 'You could see that he was special,' the former world No. 1 tells CNN Sports. 'He had all the shots … drop shots or volleys or running, it was great to watch.' Four years on from that match, Alcaraz's raw talent has come to fruition. He's now a four-time grand slam champion and the favorite to defend his French Open title when the tournament gets underway on Sunday – an event that Nadal has dominated for the past two decades. Though seeded second behind Italy's Jannik Sinner, who is making a return from a doping suspension, Alcaraz defeated his rival in the final of the Italian Open last week. Prior to that, he won the Monto-Carlo Masters and reached the final of the Barcelona Open before losing to Holger Rune. When he returns to Roland Garros to face veteran Japanese player Kei Nishikori in the first round, Alcaraz will do so having won 15 of his 16 clay-court matches this season. 'He is 22, so he has a bright present and bright future ahead of him, and he has all the tools to keep winning slams,' says Moyá, adding: 'You don't know what can happen in five years, eight, 10, I don't know, but for sure, he has three, four, five years ahead of him that he can win slams. 'I think his game is amazing. And although he can play well everywhere, I think clay is the best surface for him. He has all the shots to do well on clay. And as he proved this last month, winning Monte-Carlo and Rome, he probably is the biggest favorite to win the French Open.' With Alcaraz and Sinner leading the charge in the men's draw, it feels like this year's tournament in Paris is truly the start of a new era. Nadal, an unprecedented 14-time champion on these courts, has called time on his career, and instead will be honored by organizers when play begins on Sunday. Moyá, himself a former French Open champion who coached Nadal to eight grand slam titles, will be there to soak up the tributes to the tournament's favorite son. The chance to acknowledge Nadal's astonishing French Open record – he lost just four of his 116 matches on the Paris Clay – will be bittersweet, a fond but painful parting. 'It's going to be a strange feeling for me, but we're going to enjoy it,' says Moyá. 'We enjoyed it so much in the past eight years being with Rafa. He was feeling unbeatable and we always have great memories when we've been there, and also for me because of what happened in '98 (defeating fellow Spaniard Àlex Corretja in the final). 'It's going to be a different feeling, and I don't think I'll watch too much on TV once I'm home because I feel kind of sad not being there. But I wish all the best to all the competitors that are going to be there.' Indeed, Moyá admits that he hasn't watched a lot of tennis since Nadal bid goodbye to the sport in November. He's yet to take up another full-time coaching post, but has been named a captain for the inaugural Legends Team Cup, a new tour in which 15 not-long-retired players have been drafted into three teams. The tournament gets underway on the Caribbean island of St. Barts next month, while Moyá's team – which features 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem, as well as former top-10 players Diego Schwartzman and Fernando Verdasco – will make a first appearance in New York in July. 'During the years I've been with Rafa, (he) played against probably all of them,' says Moyá. 'That's going to help me a little bit. And I hope to give my team the right orders. They are good enough to play even without the captain, but I'll try to help. I'll try to add my experience, and I'm really looking forward to it.' The Legends Team Cup is a timely reminder that, although an elite athlete's body may wane with time, the desire to compete at a high level never fades entirely. 'This is what we have in our blood – try to win whatever it takes,' Moyá adds. 'Sometimes, you miss that competition.' That same competitive desire might be reignited briefly when Moyá and Nadal return to the French Open's Court Philippe-Chatrier on Sunday, albeit without the forehands and fireworks that typified Nadal's all-conquering performances on clay. As they soak up the tributes and applause, both will have the chance to see Alcaraz kick-off his title defense, the same nervous teenager who was crushed by his idol just over four years ago. With Nadal in the stands and Alcaraz now the formidable force on the court, it will be hard to escape the sense that one tennis generation is finally giving way to the next. And if there's one thing the two men have in common, for Moyá it boils down to mentality. 'This never-say-die attitude, they both have it,' he says, 'and this killer instinct, they have it.' Nadal built a fortress at the French Open. The time now feels ripe for Alcaraz to forge a legacy of his own.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tennis's 'Big Three' reign unlikely to be repeated: Moya
Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic dominated tennis for the best part of two decades but it is debatable whether Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner can emulate that, Nadal's former coach Carlos Moya told AFP. World number one Sinner, 23, and the 22-year-old Alcaraz have garnered seven Grand Slam titles already between them. By comparison Nadal, Federer -- both of whom have retired -- and Djokovic, a trio known as the 'Big Three', swept up 66 from 2003 to 2023. Alcaraz and Sinner are gearing up for the French Open with the former the defending champion. "To achieve what these guys have been doing these last 15, 20 years, that's something that I don't know if we are going to see in the future," Moya, a former world number one and 1998 French Open champion, told AFP from Mallorca. "I can tell that in the next couple of years, this rivalry is going to be there. "Then maybe five years, seven, but so many things can happen. "Injuries and family problems. Mental health issues, you don't know what's going to happen in three, four, five years' time." Moya, who will return to Roland Garros on Sunday as organisers pay tribute to record 14-time French Open singles champion Nadal, said rivalry was key to the longevity of the sport's three most successful men's players of all time. "They pushed each other to the limit," said the 48-year-old Spaniard. "Without the other guys, Rafa, maybe he would have retired four or five years ago with 16, 18 Grand Slams." Moya achieved a lot in his career but he said he was in awe of that trio. "My ambition was never to be one of the best players ever because I didn't have the level to dream about that," he said. "I mean, my dream was to win a Slam, to become number one, but was never to win multiple Grand Slams or being number one for a few years. "With these guys, it's a different game. "I mean, their ambition is unbelievable and how mentally stressful is that what they're doing? It's something that people are not aware of." - 'Fake news' - Moya and Nadal's relationship goes back decades but the older Spaniard said his role when he joined the team in 2016 was to strike a balance between being a coach and a friend. "I knew him so well," said Moya. "I knew him since he was 11 years old. I could know what was going through his mind, how he was feeling." Moya said there were the highs of "eight Grand Slams" but also the "difficult moments" of "hard losses in Grand Slam finals" and injuries. "When he's going through that, I mean, you have to be supporting him. "You have to be his friend. You have to be the person he can talk to." Nadal hanging up his racquet last November put Moya back on the market but he says he is not ready to return to the grind of the tour. "To be on the tour, in my opinion, you have to be 100% ready for that mentally," he said. "I didn't feel I had the energy and also after being with Rafa, it's hard to be back on the tour again with another player." As for a story linking him with Sinner, Moya said it was "fake news". "As soon as there is something new in my life, I will announce that myself. "I will not wait for a random Russian website to decide what I'm going to do," he added. Moya has retained his ties with tennis as he is a team captain for the Legends Team Cup, pitting his wits against Australia's Mark Philippoussis and American James Blake. Each has a five-man roster -- Moya's includes 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem -- which will face each other twice with prize money of $1 million at each event. The top two teams progress to the final with a $5 million prize and the Bjorn Borg Trophy at stake. For Moya, it is ideal as he says it is like going from being a football club coach to being in charge of a national team, removing the daily pressure. It means he can devote his time to his wife and three children. "My kids are 14, 12 and 11," he said. "I'm enjoying the time I'm spending with them, before you know it they're going to be 18 and they probably fly away from home." pi/mw
