Carlos Alcaraz has been backed to win up to three Grand Slams next year, with a top coach praising his mental strength following his return to action at the US Open.
Alcaraz shocked the tennis world after announcing he would return to competitive tennis at Flushing Meadows after more than four months out with a wrist problem.
Many feared the Spaniard’s return was premature, particularly as he skipped Cincinnati. Pundits and fans alike were concerned that diving straight into best-of-five-set tennis was a risk but it seems Alcaraz is fit and healthy again.
While Ben Shelton ended his run in New York at the quarter-final stage, it seems that the seven-time major winner may be back to his best before the 2026 season is up.
Now, Serena Williams’ former coach, Rick Macci, is backing the 23-year-old to win multiple majors in 2027. Moreover, he thinks Alcaraz will be even stronger mentally, which may not be good for the likes of world No 1 Jannik Sinner and two-time Grand Slam champion Alexander Zverev, among others.
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Maria Sharapova’s former coach tweeted, “The Spanish Magician, barring injury in 2027, will take another step towards rare air and bag at least 2, maybe 3 Grand Slams. What I saw mentally from him at the U.S. WIDE OPEN was another level of you cannot make this up.
“From adversity and fear, you find another gear from ear to ear. He showed me and the world more superpowers after not being in combat for 139 days.
“Most observers do not understand or appreciate what he did and how he did it. Forget the winning and losing as that to me is a by product. Next year he will be match tougher and even better mentally and locked in deeper and rougher.”
Due to his time off the court, Alcaraz has fallen to third in the ATP Tour rankings and fourth in the Race. He is more than 4,500 points behind US Open champion Zverev in the rankings, with the German and Sinner likely to duke it out for the year-end No 1 ranking.
The 6ft 6in player has won two majors this year as the 29-year-old made the most of Sinner and Alcaraz being absent or failing to make it to the final. Novak Djokovic is always worthy of a mention but the Serbian, who is down to 11 in the rankings, will be turning 40 next year and with his health issues coming more and more to the fore, can he compete for major titles again?
Sinner is set to return to action after a knee injury, something that forced him out of this year’s US Open. It remains to be seen how he will fare but if Macci’s prediction comes true and Alcaraz wins three majors in 2027, the rest of the field will have their work cut out.
