Carlos Alcaraz's childhood mentor makes feelings clear on World No. 1's progress today and current coach Juan Carlos Ferrero

Antonio Martinez Cascales, who used to mentor Carlos Alcaraz, recently spoke up about the Spaniard's remarkable progress in contemporary men's tennis. Alcaraz, still only 22, is the reigning World No. 1 and already has six Major titles to his name. Interestingly, Cascales was also a mentor to Juan Carlos Ferrero, a former No. 1 who has been coaching Alcaraz since 2019.

The veteran coach featured as a guest on Punto de Break's Llamada a Pista tennis podcast. Here, he first touched on Alcaraz's coach Ferrero, a 16-time career singles titlist who famously won the 2003 French Open.

According to Cascales, several high-profile names in the game, such as Dominic Thiem and Juan Martin del Potro, were interested in being coached by Ferrero before he chose to work with Alcaraz. However, Ferrero rejected their advances because of his opposition to the idea of working with already-established players.

"Juan Carlos had offers from the best players, from the Top 10 at that time. Thiem called him, Del Potro, Goffin, Halep... He told me he didn't want to take someone who was already established because he didn't want to be a nobody on the court," Cascales said.

Subsequently, Cascales laid bare that Ferrero's decision to coach Carlos Alcaraz, who was a junior when their collaboraton began, took him by surprise, adding:

"For me, it was relatively surprising. I know what Juan Carlos is like and what he saw in him. He hasn't changed his essence. He's a super nice guy, super grateful. That's what Juan Carlos appreciated most."

Cascales also cast his mind back to an exchange between him and Ferrero. According to the veteran coach, Ferrero asked him if Alcaraz had it in him to become the top-ranked men's singles tennis player in the world. Cascales replied in the affirmative, citing Alcaraz's on-court abilities. He also lauded Ferrero for surpassing his expectation in terms of the results he has achieved as Alcaraz's coach.

"When Carlos was 16, he asked me if I thought he was going to be number one. I said, 'He's going to be number one unless something happens, like an injury or he loses his mind.' He seemed like a very special player. Juan Carlos has done a much better job than I thought he would," Cascales concluded.

"Juan Carlos Ferrero is very hard on you...but he is also very funny when he has to be" - Carlos Alcaraz in 2024

Carlos Alcaraz (in front) prepares to hit a backhand with coach Juan Carlos Ferrero (standing behind) looking on during a practice session at the 2025 US Open (Source: Getty)

In July last year, soon after successfully defending his Wimbledon crown, Carlos Alcaraz shed light on his relationship with coach Juan Carlos Ferrero in an interview with Relevo. Alcaraz claimed that Ferrero tends to be very strict at times. However, he also admitted that his coach, when the moment allows it, can be quite a hilarious character as well.

"He is tough. He is a very serious person when he has to be, when it comes to work and discipline, he is very hard on you. But he is also very, very funny when he has to be. He knows how to differentiate the moments very well," Alcaraz said.

Carlos Alcaraz ended 2025 as the year-end No. 1 for the second time in his career. However, the Spaniard's last competitive match of the season, a clash against Jannik Sinner in the final of the year-end ATP Finals, didn't go his way.