{"id":299046,"date":"2023-11-12T00:57:39","date_gmt":"2023-11-12T00:57:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstons.com\/?p=299046"},"modified":"2023-11-12T00:57:39","modified_gmt":"2023-11-12T00:57:39","slug":"john-mcenroe-calls-carlos-alcaraz-a-freak-ahead-of-season-ending-atp-finals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstons.com\/tennis\/john-mcenroe-calls-carlos-alcaraz-a-freak-ahead-of-season-ending-atp-finals\/","title":{"rendered":"John McEnroe calls Carlos Alcaraz ‘a freak’ ahead of season-ending ATP Finals"},"content":{"rendered":"

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John McEnroe has encouraged young tennis players who want to emulate Carlos Alcaraz to go to college first because the Spaniard is “one in a billion”. The world No. 2 will make his ATP Tour Finals debut next week when the season-ending tournament gets underway in Turin.<\/p>\n

Alcaraz landed the second major of his embryotic career when he beat Novak Djokovic in this year’s Wimbledon final – a triumph that took the 20-year-old to the top of the world rankings before it was retaken by his rival in September.<\/p>\n

But while Alcaraz’s rise to the top was nurtured at Juan Carlos Ferrero’s Equelite JC Ferrero Sport Academy in Spain, all-time great McEnroe is urging the next crop of would-be tennis stars to take a different path and experience the benefits of college life before going all in on tennis.<\/p>\n

Speaking on the SmartLess podcast, as per The Tennis Letter, McEnroe said: \u201cI grew up in Queens. The best thing that ever happened to me was not going to a Nick Bollettieri-style camp.<\/p>\n

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“I would\u2019ve quit the game at 16 or 17. I love to play other sports. All studies show, both physically and mentally, it\u2019s healthier for kids to play other sports. Tennis players are peaking later than they ever did.<\/p>\n

“I think college is an experience that not only do you get to play as a team potentially if you\u2019re in a sport, but you get to grow up a little bit and also have some fun before you work your way into a profession and you\u2019ll be more prepared to handle it.<\/p>\n

“So I completely disagree with what academies do most often. For every person you hear that succeeds, there\u2019s a million that don\u2019t. Not everyone\u2019s Carlos Alcaraz, he\u2019s one in a billion. He\u2019s just a freak. He\u2019s an incredible player, but most kids have no business doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n

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