Tennis News: Carlos Alcaraz confirms end-of-season schedule

We can now expect Alcaraz to compete at the Astana Open (ATP 250) event, followed by the Swiss Indoors in Basel (ATP 500), the Paris Masters (ATP 1000 Series), the season-ending ATP Finals and then the Davis Cup.

He stated, "I'm leaving on Friday for Astana, where I will play the tournament next week." During the show, he had Eric Babalot's company, the CEO of his racket brand, and Jean-Christophe Verborg, head of player relations for Babolat.

After his first Grand Slam singles title win at the US Open this month, he became the youngest male player to take the number one spot. Alcaraz had competed at the Davis Cup World Group qualifiers for Spain, which finished 1-1.

The 19-year-old has pulled through to the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin, besides compatriot Rafael Nadal, the winner of the Australian Open and Roland-Garros titles in early 2022. 

Federer assesses Alcaraz's chances of pulling off the Big Three Grand Slam feat

Roger Federer has given his honest opinion on Alcaraz's chances to replicate the achievements of the Big Three at the Grand Slam level. 

Federer's departure depicted the end of an era dominated by him, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. There were 63 Grand Slam titles won by the trio, also known as the Big Three.

Now that the Swiss icon is gone, Djokovic and Nadal are responsible for taking the Slam tally forward, considering how the next-gen is slowly taking over.

Carlos Alcaraz, who clinched the US Open earlier this month, is now the biggest obstacle for Nadal and Djokovic, as even experts are reportedly backing up the Spaniard.

Despite the tremendous growth shown by the player, Federer is unsure of the Spaniard's abilities. He said he wants to wait till he is prepared with an opinion after five-seven Grand Slams.

"You don't want to have that price tag – 'you're the one who's going to win 20-plus," Federer spoke. "I think that's not fair because nobody can predict that number."

"Once you reach maybe five, seven, you can say like: 'OK, now we can start talking." he continued. During his early days, the Swiss were expected to cross Pete Sampras' then record of 15 Slams.

However, the Swiss know that the next generation of players will be able to secure 20 Grand Slams. He talked about the vices of playing indoors that now have different materials besides the belief that the next-gen will ease their way into winning more titles.

"I do believe at some point, somehow, there will be definitely a few players with 20-plus Slams. I'm convinced about that," remarked 41-year-old Federer.