‘He’s got to be careful’: Federer’s warning to heir apparent

Roger Federer has warned Carlos Alcaraz to be more selective with his extraordinary court coverage if he is to maximise his career.
Federer watched Alcaraz continue a fabulous 2024 campaign by beating Taylor Fritz 6-2, 7-5 on Monday (AEST) to lead Team Europe to a 13-11 Laver Cup win over Team World in Berlin.
Remarkably, the event was the first time Federer had watched Alcaraz play live after previously hitting with the Spaniard as a junior.
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Carlos Alcaraz and Roger Federer speak at the Laver Cup in Berlin. Getty
The Swiss maestro is a massive admirer of the 21-year-old who won at Roland-Garros and Wimbledon this year to lift his career grand slam total to four.
The Australian Open is the only frontier Alcaraz is yet to conquer as he bids to break compatriot Rafael Nadal’s record as a 24-year-old as the youngest men’s player to complete a career grand slam.
“His intensity, the power in his shots already, his physical capabilities that he has,” Federer told Stan Sport’s Duncan McKenzie-McHarg when asked what struck him most about Alcaraz.
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Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Bjorn Borg of Sweden. Getty
“Obviously he’s got to be careful, you know, (that) he doesn’t run basically for every ball because it’s not necessary.
“But he’ll learn that with age and with time. But also very strong (mentally) when it matters the most.”
Federer completed the career grand slam as a 27-year-old and finished with 20 major titles.
He was sold on Alcaraz’s greatness when he outlasted Novak Djokovic in last year’s classic Wimbledon final.
“Fifth set, this is stuff that we know that Novak thrives and plays at his absolute best,” Federer said.
“And for Carlos to come through that, I mean, for me, that’s when he showed like ‘OK, he’s the guy’ and he’s going to be around for a very long time… incredible movement and power.”
World No.1 Jannik Sinner, the reigning Australian Open champion, will likely be the favourite in Melbourne next year.
But Federer wouldn’t be at all surprised if Alcaraz prevailed.
“Of course he can. And if you win all the other different majors, I mean, you can win Australia,” he said.
Jannik Sinner of Italy consoles Carlos Alcaraz of Spain. Getty
“He’ll be physically perfectly prepared. It’s not something, you know, like Wimbledon, where maybe you’ve got to skip the French Open if you want to give yourself the best chance, or if clay is not your surface, you’ve got to do an extra effort.
“For him it (hard court) comes very natural, so I think he’ll have a really good chance of winning. I mean, the big matches are played at night as well, which is, I think, a bit slower for him.
“He’ll win an Australian Open, (the) question is when, he’s had the most incredible career already. I mean, it’s fantastic that he’s already got four slams without talking about all the other stuff that he’s already achieved. Fantastic effort.”
Federer conducted his interview with Stan Sport while Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis was having a hit at the Uber Arena.
Federer was delighted to see the 28-year-old enjoy a late career resurgence after overcoming a horrid run of injuries.
Kokkinakis lost 6-1, 6-4 to Stefano Tsitsipas in his Laver Cup debut for Team World but his invite to such an elite event reflects his standing in the tennis world.
Roger Federer of Switzerland meets Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia at the net. Getty
“I know Thanasi well,” Federer said.
“He practised with me in Dubai when he had the major shoulder problems. I remember he couldn’t even serve sometimes, and he’s had a tough, tough career so far with injuries, you know?
“But I’ve always loved watching him play, you know, him and Nick (Kyrgios) growing up together… he’s a fun character, so I’m very happy he’s here, to be honest and I’m excited to see him… I’m very happy with the Laver Cup, how it’s grown in the last seven years. I would have never thought it was going to be this successful.”