SHOCK: CARLOS ALCARAZ FIRES MENTOR: DISCOVER THE RIDICULOUS REASON BEHIND FERRERO’S SUDDEN SPLIT
Carlos Alcaraz and Juan Carlos Ferrero split after a 48-hour contract ultimatum. Discover the ridiculous money truth here
Guy Forget, the former world No. 4, thinks one reason for Carlos Alcaraz and Juan Carlos Ferrero splitting up is ridiculous.
Last Wednesday, it came out that Alcaraz and Ferrero were done, ending their coach-player thing that started in 2018.
Neither Alcaraz nor Ferrero has said why they broke up, but reports are giving us some clues.
Spanish media says the main reason was that Ferrero was offered less money and some changes to their deal that he didn't like.
A source close to Ferrero told CLAY and RG Media: It's simple. The contract was for a year.
The 2025 contract ended in November, and they waited until the 13th of this month to give him a new one and wanted it signed by the 15th. Juan Carlos didn't accept it, and they didn't want to change anything.
CLAY says Ferrero had two days to read and sign the contract. He made a counteroffer, but they didn't take it.
Another source told CLAY and RG Media: Ferrero and Alcaraz's dad didn't agree on how to handle the player's career.
Forget talked about the news and the reasons for the split in an interview with Tennis Actu.
I'm a bit surprised, like many tennis fans, because the partnership was really successful. We know how much Carlos Alcaraz owes to Juan Carlos Ferrero, who's been his coach for years, the Frenchman said.
We don't really know what happened between them, especially since it's just before the next season. You'd think they're already getting ready.
So, it's not ideal for Carlos Alcaraz. But when things are going so well with such good results, you wonder if it can get even better. It'll be hard to do better.
The first idea, I find a bit weird. Players like Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner make so much money these days. A coach like Juan Carlos Ferrero, I'm sure he was paid what he deserved.
So if that's really the reason, it's crazy, because a player making, I don't know, 30 million euros a year, paying his coach 800,000 or 1,500,000... it brings him so much more than he pays anyway.
The second reason, which I think is more likely, is that tensions build up with the people around him. When things aren't going well, it's not always the player who gets it: it's the girlfriend, the wife, the dad, the mom, or the agent.
Sometimes, agents cause problems and make things worse.
It's a shame because this partnership is so good. We know what we have; we don't know what's next.
When you have a young star like that, at 22, who's won everything with his mentor... and suddenly, things change.
EMMA RADUCANU DROPS TO NO. 29 AS VIRAL ILLNESS DELAYS COMPETITIVE TENNIS RETURN
Emma Raducanu falls to World No. 29. Discover her Madrid Open comeback plans and the viral illness that halted her WTA season.
Emma Raducanu has slipped further down the WTA rankings as she focuses on regaining her full fitness. At 23, she has faced several interruptions since her breakthrough win at the US Open in 2021.
While Raducanu stands out as a major title winner, having claimed her US Open victory after navigating the qualifiers, she reached her highest ranking at No. 10 less than a year later. Since then, she hasn’t added another singles title to her name, working instead on finding steadiness in her game. She’s aiming to kick off her clay-court season at the Madrid Open later this month. Yet, her ranking has dipped ahead of that event, partly because she withdrew from both the Miami Open and the Linz Open.
Currently listed at No. 29, down one spot from 28, Raducanu hasn’t gained ranking points recently due to recovering from a viral illness. Her last appearance was at Indian Wells in March, where she exited in the third round against Amanda Anisimova.
Her decision to miss Miami and Linz came after falling ill. Reports from BBC Sport noted that she started feeling unwell in February but kept competing until she pulled out of the Austrian tournament.
As Raducanu prepares for a potential comeback at Madrid, which kicks off on April 21, Romania’s Sorana Cirstea has moved ahead in the rankings. At 36, Cirstea climbed three places to 26th after reaching the quarter-finals in Linz.
Interestingly, Raducanu and Cirstea met earlier this year at the Transylvania Open final in Cirstea’s home country. Cirstea won decisively, 6-0, 6-2, though Raducanu admitted she wasn’t at her best even before the match started.
“In Cluj, I picked up a virus at the start of the tournament,” Raducanu shared with the Guardian in February. “I was dealing with that and its after-effects... which lasted for three weeks. I’ve been trying to shake it off. The Middle East trip was really tough for me.”
It seems Raducanu is keen to recover fully before stepping back onto the court. Looking back, Aryna Sabalenka took the 2023 Madrid Open title with a 6-3, 7-6 win over Coco Gauff in the final.
JANNIK SINNER TAKES WORLD NO. 1; ALCARAZ CAN RECLAIM LEAD IN BARCELONA
Jannik Sinner is World No. 1! Discover how Carlos Alcaraz can reclaim the top spot at the Barcelona Open this week.
Jannik Sinner’s win over Carlos Alcaraz at the Monte-Carlo Masters wasn't just a big match; it sent Sinner straight back to the world number one ranking. Now, the Italian leads Alcaraz by 440 points after his Monte-Carlo victory.
But the clay season is packed, and with so many tournaments coming up, there’s still plenty of room for the rankings to shift before Roland Garros rolls around.
Alcaraz doesn’t have to wait long for his shot to reclaim the top spot. His next chance comes right away at the Barcelona Open, his home tournament. Last year, Alcaraz made the final in Barcelona, and now he’s set to chase down Sinner again.
Honestly, their Monte-Carlo match didn’t quite live up to the hype. Blame the wind. It was a pretty scrappy three out of ten match, if we’re being honest. Not exactly the fireworks everyone expected.
Still, Sinner and Alcaraz will be only 160 points apart at the start of the Barcelona Open, really close. If Alcaraz wins in Barcelona, he actually jumps above Sinner in the rankings, but just barely. He’d have 13,410 points, Sinner would have 13,400. It’s that tight.
Plus, if the rumours are true and Sinner skips the Madrid Open, Alcaraz could hang onto the top spot pretty easily.
Even with the recent slip in the rankings, Alcaraz shouldn’t be discouraged. He knew Sinner had been playing out of his mind lately and probably expected the rankings to flip. Sinner outplayed him in Monte-Carlo and fully deserved that win.
But there’s a lot of tennis left this spring. Alcaraz is strong on clay and has more chances, especially in Madrid, to rack up points. Neither player competed in Madrid last year, so both have a great shot to stretch their leads.
With Alcaraz picking up extra points in Barcelona, Sinner might not stay number one for long. Expect this battle at the top to keep flipping back and forth; it’s far from over.
