A mixture of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic? Former world number one says that’s Carlos Alcaraz

Former world number one Andre Agassi has praised Carlos Alcaraz and called him the most ‘explosive’ and ‘dynamic’ player in the history of tennis. The 22-year-old already has many admirers, from the tennis world and beyond. The reason is his success at such a young age, which put him in a category that no one has managed to reach before.

Recently, Alcaraz lifted the US Open for the second time in his career after beating his closest opponent, Italy’s Jannik Sinner, in the final with a score of 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. The young Spaniard lost just one set in the whole competition, which was in the final against Sinner. With that title, Alcaraz became the youngest player in the history of tennis in the Open era to win six Grand Slam titles.

The only player who came close to him was the former world number one, Spain’s Rafael Nadal, who won five major titles before turning 23. Those performances did not go unnoticed and have earned Alcaraz a great deal of praise from some of the game's former greats. One of them is former world number one Agassi.

The 55-year-old has recently spoken to ATPTour.com, where he heaped praise on Alcaraz. Agassi was of the opinion that Alcaraz is currently the biggest ‘crowd favourite’ in the tennis world. Agassi stated that the thing that makes Alcaraz such a big threat for every player on the tour is the fact that he is a mixture of three of the greatest players in the history of tennis, Switzerland’s Roger Federer, Spain’s Nadal and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic. Agassi also went on to call Alcaraz one of a kind and believes that playing against him ‘will be something special’.

“There’s not a place in the world where he goes and he’s not the crowd favourite,” said Agassi. “And for obvious reasons. What he’s brought to the game is a mixture of the last generation we had. I know Novak is still playing, but Novak, Roger and Rafa — he’s like a combination of all of them in one, with the RPMs he can put [on the ball], the defence that he has like Novak, the feel that he has like Federer. To see that in one person on a tennis court is remarkable. one of the most explosive, dynamic players that the game has ever seen. I’ve seen him play live a few times, but to be down there on the court next to it will be something special.”

Alcaraz eyes Career Grand Slam

While talking to the media after his success in New York this year, which was Alcaraz’s second Grand Slam title in 2025, the reigning world number one quickly shifted his focus to achieving the career Grand Slam next year when he will take the court in Melbourne to play at the Australian Open. It is the only major event where Alcaraz has never been able to get past the quarterfinals stage. In the 2024 edition, Alcaraz lost to Germany’s Alexander Zverev in the last-eight clash in Melbourne with a score of 6-1, 6-3, 6-7, 6-4.

In 2025, Alcaraz once again faltered at the same stage, this time against Djokovic with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4. Alcaraz highlighted that when he returns to the court in the pre-season, he will be focusing on achieving that target. “It's my first goal, to be honest. When I just go to the preseason to [see] what I want to improve, what I want to achieve, Australian Open is there,” Alcaraz said. “It's the first or second tournament of the year, and it is always the main goal for me to complete a Career Grand Slam, Calendar Grand Slam. So it's going to be great.”