Carlos Alcaraz is poring over clips of Roger Federer and Andy Murray in order to master how to play on grass.
The Spaniard is a novice on the surface but on Friday plays the first quarter-final of his career on grass at Queen’s Club against Grigor Dimitrov.
Novak Djokovic is the red-hot favourite to win an eighth Wimbledon title when the tournament begins next month but Alcaraz has instead looked to Federer and Murray to better understand how to play on grass.
“I have a lot of time to learn from the best players in the world: Andy, Roger, Djokovic,” he said. “I want to look up to the best players on grass and movers.
“Roger and Andy for me are the best players that are moving great on grass, So, I want to be the same… like them.
“I’m not talking about Djokovic because Djokovic slides like clay court. But I try to put similar stuff in my game that Roger and Andy do on grass.”
There are parallels between Alcaraz and his long-time idol Rafael Nadal on the surface. Nadal looked out of sorts on grass in the infancy of his career before going on to win Wimbledon in 2008 and 2010.
At the start of Queen’s, Alcaraz said he had no grasscourt expectations for this season but, after an impressive 6-2, 6-3 dismantling of Jiri Lehecka on Thursday, he said such expectations had now shifted.
His opening match was a three-hour marathon, the win over Lehecka sealed in less than half that time. But Alcaraz admitted he was still getting to grips with the nuances of playing on grass.
“Moving on grass is the key of everything,” he said. “Practising, having sets, having matches… helps you a lot to feel more comfortable on grass.
“When I arrived here… it was a little bit different for me. Right now, I’m feeling great and feeling a lot of confidence moving and hitting the ball here on grass.”
Aside from his tennis, Alcaraz said he and his team had been trying their hand at mini golf in between matches and practice to help him switch off. The Spaniard is also a keen golfer when time allows.
Of his golfing prowess – mini or otherwise – he said: “I play a lot of games when I’m with my team and mini golf is one of them. It’s something that turns off my mind a little bit to he happy, to enjoy the time here and have quality time with my team as well. I have to improve a little bit more on golf.”
