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Carlos Alcaraz's recent fireworks at the Asian swing have seen the Spaniard being compared to former World No. 1 John McEnroe by one of the most recognizable tennis coaches of all time, Brad Gilbert. In addition to coaching Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick during some very important years of their careers, the American has also worked with the likes of Andy Murray, Coco Gauff, and Kei Nishikori over the years.
Alcaraz was in action at the Shanghai Masters on Saturday, putting on a show against local favorite Shang Juncheng in the second round. After beating the Chinese 6-2, 6-2 in straight sets, the World No. 3 will next face off against another Chinese, Wu Yibing, in the next round.
Before Shanghai, the four-time Grand Slam champion played at the ATP 500 China Open, where he took down Jannik Sinner in the final to win his first title following a shocking exit from the US Open.
Taking to social media after Carlos Alcaraz's takedown of Shang, Gilbert shared his awe at the 21-year-old's movement and creativity. The American tennis coach further added that he could only think of one other player who was as good at this age—the one and only McEnroe.
"Watching replay escape from Alcaraz, thinking 🤔 about his creativity and movement at the net are simply amazing. someone else at same age was 🤩 so good 👍at that Johney Mac," Gilbert wrote.
Considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time, McEnroe won 77 ATP singles titles over the course of his career, including seven Grand Slam titles. He is also the only man in the history of the tour to be ranked World No. 1 in both singles and doubles at the same time, amassing nine men's doubles Major trophies.
"Carlos Alcaraz is my favorite player to watch" - John McEnroe
John McEnroe himself has come out in major praise of Carlos Alcaraz in the past, even saying that the Spaniard was better than Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic at the same age.
The American also proclaimed that Alcaraz was his favorite player to watch, adding the youngster brought a lot to tennis that the sport badly needed.
"He's better than Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic at 21 for me... Alcaraz is a unique individual that we need around in the sport for long time. You gotta love what he brings to the sport," McEnroe said during a pre-show at the 2024 French Open.
"Carlos Alcaraz is my favorite player to watch. He's the most skilled young man I've ever seen playing at this age. It's hard to imagine he can keep improving cause he is so good at everything already," he added.
Alcaraz has had a stellar 2024 season already, winning two of the four Grand Slam titles at the French Open and Wimbledon.
