OLYMPIC GAMES JULY 2024
SPAIN
We're staying here.
Uh… we don't spend much time here,
but this is where our physical therapists see us.
This was the living room.
This is all we have. There's a TV because, whenever we can,
we watch other sports when a Spanish team is participating.
And, well, that's all for here.
This is Rafa's stuff.
We leave a lot of stuff here
so we don't have to pile it up in our rooms.
You'll see why. Let's go upstairs.
Okay, this is it.
Let me close the bathroom door.
Rafa and Munar sleep here.
And I sleep here, with Pedrito.
These are my things.
This is what we're allowed to bring. Pedrito sleeps there, and I sleep here.
It's cardboard.
It's pretty narrow, so when I turn around in bed,
I always feel like I'm gonna fall out.
Anyway, we sleep wherever else we can, so we actually couldn't care less.
Representing Spain in the Olympics has been a dream of mine,
and, obviously,
it was even more incredible to be there with Rafa
for my first and his last Olympics.
It would be really amazing to win that gold medal with Rafa.
CARLOS ALCARAZ MY WAY
-Over here? -No, no, over here.
-This way? -Lucy?
No, it's upstairs. It's the next one.
-Can we get in this way? -Oh, okay, okay.
You know this better than I do.
One of the greatest moments in these Olympics.
The men's doubles with Rafa Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz.
They are one of the Spanish team's doubles pairing.
What a show.
Hooray, champions! You two are the best!
-Come on, guys! -Come on!
Carlos, you're the best!
QUARTERFINALS MEN'S DOUBLES
4 HOURS BEFORE
Fifteen euros to the winner, five to the runner-up,
and ten to both losers. Got it?
Perfect, got it.
Parcheesi is sacred to him.
I always joke about this.
I say, "Rafa, the world champion of Parcheesi is me, you know."
"What are you talking about?" he says. "You're just a newbie."
Roll the dice. You're up.
Looks like you were lucky. That's not bad, not bad at all.
Shit!
Hey, newbie, you're catching up with me with a five,
but let me tell you, you're not winning this one.
Not at Parcheesi, at least!
Rafa has come this far because he's a winner
and he doesn't like losing, not even at Parcheesi.
This never fails. I'll throw.
The rivalry between these two during a Parcheesi game
was as intense as a Grand Slam title match.
He's almost home. Almost home.
-Damn, you've got to do the-- -Almost home.
-Oh man! -No way!
-This is a joke, man. -Come on!
And, bada-boom, I won the game.
Damn, dude. Holy shit. Shit!
Parcheesi is a board game based on luck, and you play one game.
Obviously, if we'd played a hundred games, I would've won more times than him.
QUARTERFINALS
Playing with Rafa is something I do with pride and passion.
I wanna do everything possible
to try and make Rafa remember his last Olympic Games
in the best way possible.
Come on!
-Let's go. -Okay, everyone. Let's go, let's go.
With an Olympic medal, as he deserves.
Here they come.
"Nadalcaraz," Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal.
Everybody is already sure that Rafa and Carlos will win the gold medal.
This means, for Carlos, even more pressure than he usually has.
Neither of us usually plays doubles,
and it was the first time we were playing together.
Carlos was nervous
because it was his first match at the Olympics.
That day, we really didn't play well enough,
and the team we were up against was very inspired.
We hesitated a lot, and that took a toll on us.
We didn't feel comfortable. We weren't at ease.
Oh!
They were competing against two American players
who specialized in doubles.
They lost the match.
It really bothered me.
It really bothered me a lot because this dream vanished into thin air,
because the possibility completely disappeared.
It… it hurt me. It really hurt me a lot.
Yesterday, you played doubles. You gave it your all.
You played a hard match.
There's no excuse. There's no excuse at all.
You should be proud, okay?
It was painful for me
because that was the last chance I had to win a medal,
and I think it would've been really nice to win a medal with him too.
Really nice. Uh… but it didn't happen.
Sometimes we miss out on opportunities,
and in the end, it's all very hard to accept.
At that moment, I knew he couldn't let himself feel down,
only because he had a greater challenge ahead of him.
He had to try and win the men's singles gold medal.
Okay, well, I told Carlos that if he made it to the finals,
then, obviously, I'd come, so…
When I got there, he didn't seem affected by it.
I asked him about it, and he said he was fine and he was prepared.
He was obviously upset after losing the doubles match with… with Rafa,
but he was doing everything to stay focused on his singles match,
and… and that was perfectly fine.
On a tactical level, you already know him well.
Now you just need to anticipate what he usually does.
When he comes up to the net, use the down-the-line shots.
When you're near the sidelines, use the down-the-line shots.
Go for him. Don't hold anything back.
If you do, you'll regret it. Don't hold anything back.
Wear him out physically
with those two strong legs you're standing on. Okay?
You have to decide to go for it. In your mind, just go for it.
Go for it.
You got this.
Don't worry. You did great. Let's go.
The biggest challenge in the final is Novak Djokovic.
Especially after Wimbledon, where he had an outstanding result.
I knew Djokovic would play at a high level
since it was his last chance to win in the Olympic Games,
which was something he absolutely wanted.
Novak got to the final with tremendous energy.
He looked like a 20-year-old kid.
It was a tough match.
Carlos was starting to get more and more nervous.
There was the added pressure of having to win the gold,
and that stopped him from giving it his all.
That moment was also a very painful one.
To be honest, I, uh…
Wait.
Take it easy.
Take your time. Take your time, Carlitos.
Okay.
Bueno.
Carlos had a hard time.
He was also very tired after playing all week long.
He had played singles and doubles, and that day,
Carlos hit rock bottom.
Then after that, we had the Cincinnati incident.
AUGUST 2024
Thirty-fifteen.
I lost it.
The fact of the matter is I wasn’t mentally strong enough
to overcome all the stress.
I didn't really know what I needed. I didn't know… if… if I needed to quit
or if I was losing my passion.
I knew that if I was gonna play like that and feel that way,
that it would be better to not play tennis at all.
That day, he simply lost it.
The way he lost it, you could see he was full of rage.
He was also filled with anxiety,
and he took it out on his racket by smashing it
three or four times on the ground. He was feeling bad.
I called him and asked if he wanted to shoot some hoops with me.
He came down. We talked and spent some quality time together as brothers.
It wasn't good for him to lock himself in his room and start thinking
or checking his phone
because what happened was out and going viral everywhere.
We'd never seen him like this before.
Carlos Alcaraz lost his temper in the game…
We don't remember seeing him have such a fit of anger
in all his career.
We saw an unhinged Alcaraz who lost control of himself when he lost…
The tennis player apologized for his behavior.
Honestly, that moment was really difficult.
It was… it was hard.
AUGUST 2024
And from Spain,
2022 US Open Champion,
Carlos Alcaraz.
After Cincinnati, I wanted to be better,
to forget what happened and focus on the US Open,
which was an important tournament.
But… I couldn't. I couldn't do it.
What am I looking for there?
Come on, Charlie. That's terrible.
-Unbelievable. -Come on, come on.
Game, set, and match, Van de Zandschulp.
To beat a great player, you have to have a great day.
Van de Zandschulp just had one, while Carlos clearly didn't.
In… in my head, I have… I sometimes have a…
In my head, I often have a puzzle I can't solve.
I don't know what I want. I want one thing. I don't want another.
And, in all honesty, there are times I don't know what I want at all.
It makes me feel a bit overwhelmed not knowing what to do.
Game, set, and match, Sinner, three sets to love.
Yannick didn't play in the Olympic Games, so that gave him an advantage.
He came prepared to play in the US Open and gave it his all.
Your 2024 US Open Men's Champion, Jannik Sinner!
We won, 2024, two Slams each.
But every season can change so quickly.
Let's see what's coming in the future. You never know.
After the US Open, I didn't wanna touch a racket.
I said, "I don't wanna play tennis for a week and a half, even two weeks."
I told him we hadn't trained since before the French Open,
and he said, "Well, I'm going to the Formula 1 race,"
and I replied, "Carlos, you can't go to a Formula 1 race now."
But he gave me no choice.
He just said, "I'm going to go, and that's the end of that."
I guess if you want to be the greatest player in history,
you have to be a slave to the game.
Otherwise, you'll… you'll have to come to terms with the idea
that you won't be the best version of yourself.
Carlos!
SEPTEMBER 2024
Those days off really helped me disconnect.
I managed to put aside everything that happened.
Going to the Laver Cup, doing something completely different, helped me a lot.
Carlos!
The Laver Cup is a team tournament
in which Europe faces the rest of the world.
Uh, the Laver Cup was the easiest job offer I ever accepted.
Roger Federer was part of this.
And then I look at the other side of the net, I look over there,
and it's my greatest rival
and one of my best friends, Björn Borg, there, so I'm like…
I'm just happy
because this is my last time in Laver Cup.
And Federer, to see him
and spend time with him, it's… it's a big pleasure for me.
-Have you talked with Federer? -No, I haven't seen him yet.
Uh… the thing is, when he was warming up on the court,
I was in the locker rooms, warming up with my physical therapist,
so I haven't seen him yet.
Anyway, I hope I get to talk to him one of these days.
Let's go over here.
The Laver Cup is a competition I was very excited about.
Obviously, I knew Federer would be there.
That was an extra incentive for me.
The image of Roger, when you see him on the court,
he's the kind of tennis player that makes it look effortless.
Roger, for me, he's the handbook of tennis.
His technique, his composure,
his posture, his elegance.
No one makes it look as easy as he does.
He sometimes doesn't even break a sweat!
Oh!
He makes it look easy.
He's such an artist on the court, and elegant and athletic at the same time.
A class act all the way through.
He's different from everyone else, and I also feel that way about myself.
He'll be here soon. Did you hear me? He'll be here soon.
That's strong. That's strong.
I barely know Carlos.
I've only practiced one time, you know, in the past with him.
I basically never saw Carlos again until this week.
Oh my God!
How are you? Hey, nice to see you at the Laver Cup.
-How was your warm-up? -It was pretty good.
-Ready? -I'm ready.
I'm ready to show some ball skills.
Yeah, exactly. I'm excited to see you play, finally.
-Let's see. Yeah, yeah. -It's that way.
Thank you for coming to the Laver Cup. It means a lot to us,
and wish you all the best and incredible success.
-Well done. -Thanks.
-The way you did it as well. -Thank you.
-Fantastic. -Thank you very much.
-Let's see on court. -Yes, absolutely. Good luck, man.
Thank you, Roger.
Come here! Come say hello!
Now I got… I got the magic. I got the magic!
Yeah, that's it, that's it!
It's over there.
Carlos finally is playing at the Laver Cup,
and he seems to me like a happy man. You know, like a kid in the candy store?
Having seen, for example, Roger or Rafa has been incredibly good.
But it's a lot of pressure for the younger players who come next,
you know, because we're expected to perform as well as they did,
and that's gonna be hard
because these guys are from outer space, right?
Welcome to the Laver Cup, Carlos Alcaraz!
The Big Three, these are one of the craziest stats
in the history, by far, of our sport.
Reaching them is… it is all consuming.
You need to just be hyper focused all the time.
Just focus what you're doing.
I mean, outside the court, that's up to you,
but still, he should focus on his tennis.
Sleeping, eating, breathing tennis until you reach that point
where it's just too unbearable to keep doing what you're doing.
Even aiming for that can sometimes be… I don't know, unheard of?
To be able to achieve what Novak, Roger, even myself have achieved,
you need to feel that your sacrifices you're making are worth it
and that they pay off.
If you feel like you're sacrificing too much, uh,
then you probably won't make it
because, in the end, you'll end up burning out way too soon.
-Very nice to see you. -How are you?
Yeah, incredible.
Hey, look at this. Old school.
Do I have to charge the flash? No.
It went so quick! This is very old school.
You probably don't even remember this.
Honestly, I… I don't.
-CD. He might even not know what a CD… -VHS? You know VHS?
-CDs. -CDs might be…
-I know… I… I… I know them. -You've seen CDs.
Yeah, yeah. I've seen. I've seen.
I'm lucky enough to pick something up from each one of them.
How could you not pick something up
from one of the greatest players in history?
Rafa Nadal, from Roger Federer.
I asked him what… what he did
to keep himself motivated for so many years.
For many, many, many years.
He told me that you have to enjoy the journey.
You always need to make sure you have fun at the tournaments,
no matter where they are.
The friends you're with, the things you do.
Go to the movies, go to…
You always need to have something fun to do wherever you go.
-Good to see you. -I'll watch. Nice to see you again.
Again, again!
Again! Jesus, it's been too long.
The compatible life is a tricky one, right?
You wanna be everywhere, but you can't be.
It's… it's definitely very challenging trying to put it…
put the puzzle all together,
but important is just sometimes to take a break, get away from it all
so when you do come, you're actually excited to be in the limelight again.
Good evening.
This is the news that has broken the hearts of the Spanish people.
The greatest Spanish athlete in history retires.
…spanning 23 years.
22 grand slams, 14 French Open titles.
"Every beginning has an ending."
With these words, Rafael Nadal announces his retirement.
We're about to begin a truly special ceremony
to honor the extraordinary career of Rafa Nadal.
Thank you.
The tennis player who inspired me to become a professional tennis player
retires from tennis.
I love you, Rafa!
I've asked him questions, and I've learned a lot.
I've been lucky enough to pick up many things from him,
to try to assimilate that knowledge and use it in my career.
But… I would forget everything
just to relive that feeling
from talking to him as an equal, as a friend.
This has been an incredible privilege.
We've had a lot of fun.
We've achieved many beautiful things together,
and now it's your turn to carry on with the sport.
Rafa has given us a legacy.
His spirit of sacrifice, his sacrifice for all that is tennis,
24-7, 365 days a year.
And that's what people expect from Carlos.
And leaves a legacy forever, Rafa Nadal!
Rafa has been a role model of hard work and personal drive.
And now Carlos has to choose who he wants to be.
SPAIN WE ALL SUPPORT VALENCIA
I really need to be prepared.
And for that, I need to be mentally rested.
I need to have several days off after certain major moments.
I also need to train for a whole week until I feel I'm properly prepared.
I know I need both things.
I've got two things to say. One, you need to learn from your mistakes,
and two, we need to find, and this is very important,
the balance between your days off, your training, and keeping you motivated.
-Sure. -And that's not easy.
Right.
Recently, you went to the Formula 1 race.
I told you, "Carlos, you shouldn't go," and you said, "I have to. I need it."
I said, "Fine, but I don't agree with you."
In the end, you went anyway. It was your decision, whether I agreed or not.
But there will…
there will be many times I won't agree with you,
and you know that.
Well, you're right, but the thing is… okay, it depends on…
on the moment because there are often times when…
I say to myself, "Maybe I'm just wasting time
on things that really aren't that important."
After all, I basically play tennis only because… I really enjoy it.
But there are times when I don't feel that way at all.
There are times I go to a tournament and play out of obligation.
Then I think about the ranking, I think about the bonus,
I think about all the other stuff,
and that's when I kind of lose focus on what's really important to me.
I always say this, and you know this as well as I do.
You and I, we both always wanna be seated at the highest-ranking table,
you know? But…
but sometimes… you know…
but sometimes, I wonder, "How do we do it?"
-I know that I should-- -You first need to find your "how."
-Absolutely. -Your way.
But your way needs to be professional and have common sense.
Yes, I need that. I need to find balance. With balance, I--
To differentiate the situations.
There will be times when you'll feel like doing something else,
but, along with your own personal growth,
you'll come to understand much better what you really need
and what you really, uh… have to do.
We're here to help you and be brutally honest with you,
so now, whether you say yes or no, that'll be on you.
Yeah. Yeah, I mean, to be honest, that's actually what I really need.
Yeah, I get it.
I need people to tell me everything straight up
and not try… not try to just…
humor me or laugh with me, so…
-Fine. -Let's do this.
-Starting now.
Starting now.
Welcome, everybody.
OCTOBER 2024
These two have shared out the Grand Slams this season.
The dominant forces of 2024.
And who knows? Perhaps the dominant forces of many years to come.
Are you Team Sinner or Team Alcaraz?
So I've been trying to remind him
not what he has to do but who he really is.
Carlos is not your regular athlete.
He's not even your regular person.
Science and our mindset both tell us something,
so we know what we have to do, but when you look at his results,
knowing he doesn't do it like us, he still wins.
Oh, what a touch!
He's from another planet, and we have to be there to learn,
to be better with him. There's no other way.
If we want him to have extraordinary results,
we need to be just as extraordinary as him.
He's soaking up everything, Alcaraz.
Carlos taught me to be flexible, that there are moments of joy in life,
and that you have to know how to enjoy them.
I learned from him how he deals with situations,
how he empathizes with people.
Ever since Carlos has come into my life, I see myself as a different person,
as someone who's happier and more relaxed at times,
and that's something that has brought us closer,
that makes us feel more like family.
We've all been learning.
We're learning to adapt ourselves to the way Carlos is.
We're also trying to bring out the best of what's in him
to make him the greatest tennis player in history.
Carlos Alcaraz takes the trophy in Beijing.
It's a hat trick of wins against Sinner this season.
It's three out of three for the Spaniards.
After all, you only live your life once.
You have to know how to enjoy it and what your objectives are.
Sometimes things aren't very clear when you're 21.
And, well, what really matters
is that he can become someone who is accomplished,
someone who can say, "Wow, I've really enjoyed the process,
the journey, and thanks everyone for helping me."
My family, my team, who are supporting me every… every day, you know,
telling me, you know, the things that I want…
that I don't want to hear all the time, so…
Uh… you know, have been difficult moments,
you know, the… the last… the last two months.
So thank you very, very much for… for everything, and…
and this week especially.
I really love Carlos a lot.
So much so that I would rather fail professionally
than have him tell me in the future, "I wasn't happy."
"I achieved all this, Albert, but I was never happy."
That would hurt me deeply.
My dream is to become one of the greatest players in history.
Yeah, I wanna sit at the same table as the Big Three.
Yeah.
Mm… Do I really have the mindset to do everything it takes,
to deal with everything
so I can become the greatest player in history?
Well, right now, I don't know.
I'm still young. I have a lot ahead of me,
but from what I've lived so far,
I definitely prefer to put happiness before…
before any kind of accomplishment.
Because being happy is an accomplishment.
And happiness isn't always easy to find.
CARLOS ALCARAZ MY WAY