Wimbledon: Carlos Alcaraz plays down his father filming Novak Djokovic training session
Carlos Alcaraz pulled rank on his childhood buddy Holger Rune to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time where he will play third seed Daniil Medvedev; it has been claimed Alcaraz's father filmed Novak Djokovic training; Alcaraz is seeded to meet Djokovic in the final
Thursday 13 July 2023 08:08, UK
Carlos Alcaraz walked out of Centre Court and into a spying controversy after reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time.
The world No 1 beat fellow 20-year-old Holger Rune in straight sets to reach the last four.
He then had to respond to reports his father Carlos, a regular member of his entourage, recorded Novak Djokovic - who he is seeded to meet in the final - while the seven-time champion was training at Wimbledon's Aorangi Park.
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"Oh, probably it is true. My father is a huge fan of tennis. He doesn't only watch my matches," said Alcaraz.
"I think he gets into the club at 11am, gets out at 10pm, watching matches, watching practice from everyone.
"Being able to watch Djokovic in real life, yeah, probably it is true he's filmed the sessions."
Pressed on whether having the video footage would give him a competitive advantage, Alcaraz said: "I don't think so.
"I mean, I have a lot of videos from Djokovic on every platform. I think it's not an advantage for me."
Alcaraz did not need any inside information to beat Rune 7-6 (7-3) 6-4 6-4.
The Spaniard and sixth seed Rune grew up playing against each other and teamed up for a doubles tournament when they were 14.
On Wednesday they became the first men under 21 to face each other in a Wimbledon quarter-final in the open era.
Alcaraz, still a relative grass-court rookie despite his win at Queen's Club a fortnight ago, said: "Honestly it's amazing for me, a dream since I started playing tennis, making good results at Wimbledon, such a beautiful tournament."
Alcaraz will play Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev, who beat him in the second round two years ago when he really was a novice on grass, in the semi-final.
"We played two times, once here at Wimbledon," added Alcaraz. "It's going to be a tough one.
"But right now I'm going to enjoy this moment. You don't play a semi-final every year."
