As if saving three match points to win the French Open were not outlandish enough, Carlos Alcaraz has once again achieved the impossible: a quiet holiday in Ibiza.
The 22-year-old’s annual excursions to the most Bacchanalian of the Balearics were a big topic in Carlos Alcaraz: My Way, a documentary released in April.
For two years in a row the Spaniard’s team tried to dissuade him, twice he defied them and joined friends for three days to ‘reventar’ - literally to burst, translated in Netflix’s ghastly Hollywood dubbing as ‘get wasted’.
After beating Jannik Sinner in one of the great Grand Slam finals last Sunday, Alcaraz partied in Paris until the early hours of Monday, then flew to Ibiza via Madrid.
But the emotional and physical toll of that five-and-a-half-hour epic was such that it was more R&R than R&B.
‘This year Ibiza was more chill,’ said Alcaraz at Queen’s Club, on the eve of the event he won in 2023.
Carlos Alcaraz has revealed how he recharged after his gruelling French Open final win over Jannik Sinner
Alcaraz continued his post Roland-Garros tradition of visiting the Spanish island of Ibiza
‘It was fun but honestly, I rested a lot, physically and mentally. But I had fun, a nice three days. It was more than enough.
‘Once I went to bed so late, that's the craziest thing. Obviously I danced a bit, I did some shots as well, but nothing more than that. More chill and as a normal person does.’
Did his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero and agent Albert Molina try to persuade him not to go this time? ‘
They didn't,’ said Alcaraz with his toothy grin. ‘They knew at the beginning of Roland Garros I was going to go, 100 per cent.’
It has become a lethal formula: French Open, Ibiza, Queen’s, win Wimbledon. If he makes it a hat trick of All England Club titles, as he is favourite to do, surely the routine will continue ad infinitum.
‘It's really, really intense, the clay season,’ said Alcaraz. ‘After Roland Garros is the best moment to go anywhere. My friends go to Ibiza every year but it doesn't matter where you go - it's a time to turn off your mind.
‘After such an intense Roland Garros it was great to disconnect from everything, have fun and then come back with more energy.’
Alcaraz’s trip to Ibiza last year left him undercooked for Queen’s, and the man who took advantage was Jack Draper, beating the Spaniard in straight sets.
In contrast, Jack Draper has shared how he has enjoyed a return to London ahead of Queen's by staying at home
Since then, Draper has risen from 31st to fourth in the world and plays here as No2 seed to Alcaraz’s No1.
The 23-year-old was upset by world No62 Alexander Bublik in the last 16 of the French Open, and had a couple of days off before getting back to work - although he was not tempted to join Alcaraz in heading off to a party island.
‘Everyone’s different,’ said Draper. ‘I like being at home. I love going back to the UK, to my flat, or to the family home. When I work, I work really hard and I’m always on. It’s nice to come back and take my mind off everything.
‘I don’t feel the urge to be going out partying and all that stuff. I’d rather just come home.’
One evening after training, Draper settled down in his Putney flat to watch the French Open final. As a man on a mission to chase down Sinner and Alcaraz, it must have been a daunting watch.
‘Unbelievable tennis,’ said Draper, who plays tricky American Jenson Brooksby in the first round here.
‘It inspired all the players, it captured attention around the world, even people who aren’t into tennis.
‘I don’t know what I’m capable of yet but I aspire to be at that level. What those guys are doing is setting the way and changing the game. Players like myself are going to be working very hard to get to that point.’
The Brit said he was in awe of the Alcaraz-Sinner final, which is the second-longest men's singles Grand Slam final of all time
As much as Alcaraz switched off from tennis in Ibiza, he could not resist watching a few highlights himself.
‘The bad thing in tennis is sometimes you don't have time to realise what you have done,’ said Alcaraz, who will face fellow Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the first round of Queen’s.
‘But I've been talking with my friends, I've been watching highlights and when that moment comes, the love-40, I still can’t believe I won at the end of that match.
'At some point, I had to calm myself and realise I did it.’
