The foundation for Alcaraz’s healthy approach to work-life balance comes from his parents’ approach to his career. His dad, Carlos, was a tennis coach and club administrator in Murcia, while mom, Virginia, was sales assistant at Ikea—and together they were the antithesis of the sport’s infamous overbearing “tennis parents”.
“He always wanted to ‘respect’ the role of the father. He never wanted to mix being a coach and a dad,” Alcaraz reflected. “He always wanted that to be separate… and I think that helped me a lot.
“He never stepped on the court when I was with (my coach and tennis group). He always talked to my coaches about what I have to practice, but never directly to me.”
As Alcaraz progressed, the coaching was instead left up to Juan Carlos Ferrero, a former world No. 1 from Spain. Their partnership has already produced four Grand Slam singles titles and has seen Alcaraz skyrocket up the ATP rankings with little sign of slowing down.
