Carlos Alcaraz says he thinks he could beat Rafael Nadal at French Open if the pair meet at Roland-Garros

Carlos Alcaraz says he thinks he could beat Rafael Nadal if the pair meet at the upcoming French Open.

Alcaraz by contrast is having another remarkable year, having already won titles in Buenos Aires, Indian Wells and Barcelona, and admitted he would “love to measure” himself against the 22-time major champion in Paris.

“His tournament is Roland-Garros, he has the most titles, but this is the most symbolic for him. I would love to play him at Roland-Garros, measure myself against him and see what happens.

“I think I could beat him, but Rafa has a thousand lives there.”

Alcaraz, whose head-to-head with Nadal reads 2-1 in the latter’s favour, added that his own game has been shaped by how Nadal has conducted himself on court over the years, especially how he has regularly recovered from being “dead” in matches.

“I am inspired by the courage and the winning gene that he [Nadal] has inside himself,” the 20-year-old said.

“Especially that rage that he has on the court of wanting to win and doing everything possible to win. To never quit, to never give up and go for everything.

“For me, mentally he is an example and he is also in other areas. No matter how many problems come up, he always provides solutions and never makes excuses.

“He has experienced many games in which he has been dead and he has known how to turn it around. And that is not easy at all, staying mentally strong to find solutions.

“It is something that I would like to take from Rafa, the ability that he has to adapt to any situation.”

When quizzed about whether it would be possible to win any tournament 14 times – let alone a major – Alcaraz set himself that challenge, and revealed that Wimbledon is high up on his list of the Grand Slam he would like to win most.

He said: “It is almost impossible to win any tournament 14 times even if it is an [ATP] 250 [event]. But let’s try, in life you have to challenge yourself, hopefully I can be like Rafa in that.

“Roland-Garros has always been the Grand Slam for the Spanish and I would love to win it, but I would be especially excited to win Wimbledon.

“My style of play can go quite well on grass because I am aggressive, I go to the net, I hit hard, and that’s what you have to do on grass.

“I was once told that grass is like a boxing match, that you have to try to hit first so they don’t hit you, and that’s a good comparison.”

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