Patrick Mouratoglou explains exactly what makes Carlos Alcaraz’s forehand so special

Carlos Alcaraz has established himself as one of the greatest tennis players in history at the age of 23.

The Spaniard, who turned professional in 2018, has already captured seven Grand Slam titles, a tally greater than Boris Becker and Andy Murray, and as many as John McEnroe. Earlier this year, Alcaraz became the youngest player ever to complete the Career Grand Slam; the name given to the feat of winning all four major titles at least once.

Alcaraz displayed raw talent from the minute he burst onto the scene, and possesses arguably the best forehand the game has ever seen.

Indeed, former British player Tim Henman suggested exactly that after Alcaraz’s victory over Tommy Paul at the US Open last month, during which he tallied 23 winners off the forehand wing. Henman said: “I was thinking on commentary and thinking where does this forehand rank in terms of the greatest forehands we have ever seen in the game.

“You think Nadal on clay, Federer hit a few good ones. But for me right now, after seeing that, I think it’s the best forehand I have seen.” Alcaraz’s forehand features similar spin to Nadal’s, but he hits it with almost as much power as Juan Martin del Potro used to.

Serena Williams’ former coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, thinks the amount of power Alcaraz is able to generate on his forehand is down to how straight his arm is during contact. In a post on LinkedIn, Mouratoglou said: “Ideally, the arm should be straight when you hit a forehand. A little bent, like Sinner, is fine. Totally bent is another matter.

“The distance between your shoulder and your hand has a major impact on how much power you can produce. Alcaraz, Federer, Nadal, Verdasco, Del Potro: all of them hit the forehand with the arm fully extended.”

According to statistics published by Tennis Insights earlier this year, Alcaraz has the highest forehand shot quality of anyone on the ATP Tour. With a score of 8.99, he tops the likes of Jannik Sinner, Joao Fonseca and Lorenzo Musetti.

Alcaraz is currently at the Vienna Open, where he is bidding to clinch the 28th title of his career and his fourth of the season. So far this year, Alcaraz has won the Australian Open, the Qatar Open and the Japan Open. He was sidelined for four months of the season with a wrist injury, which saw him miss Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

He is in the quarterfinals of the Vienna Open, where he will now take on American star Tommy Paul. Alcaraz is on a six-match winning streak against Paul, having not lost to him since the 2023 Canadian Open.

Should he advance past Paul, Alcaraz will face either Daniil Medvedev or Adrian Mannarino in the semifinals. His most likely opponent in the final would be Alexander Zverev, who recently secured world number one status.