Carlos Alcaraz discussed the emotional moment that brought his tennis coach Juan Carlos Ferrero to tears after the former’s 2024 China Open triumph over defending champion Jannik Sinner. In other news, Rafael Nadal was spotted unleashing powerful forehands in hardcourt training ahead of the ‘Six Kings Slam’ exhibition in Riyadh.

Meanwhile, Belgian tennis player Zizou Bergs shared insights on the strategy he created with his coaches to overcome intimidation from Rafael Nadal’s pre-match routine. Andrey Rublev opened up about a shocking amputation scare during mysterious surgery before his China Open campaign.

On that note, here’s a recap of today’s top tennis news:

Carlos Alcaraz shares the reason behind coach Juan Carlos Ferrero’s tears post-China Open win

Carlos Alcaraz’s coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, was brought to tears after the former defeated defending champion Jannik Sinner 6-7(6), 6-4, 7-6(3) in the final of the 2024 China Open, which lasted three hours and 21 minutes.

“That’s a good thing to know, I guess (smiling). But yeah, I mean, it was a really special win for me, lifting this trophy in front of my team, part of my family. It was a great moment for me,” Carlos Alcaraz said.

Reflecting on his big victory, especially after a lackluster performance during the North American swing, the Spanish tennis star mentioned that the team had been through some challenging times recently, which might have contributed to his coach’s emotional reaction.

“I guess he got emotional at the end because we all know what we went through the last month or the last two months. It was a really difficult moment on the court, off the court,” he added.

Carlos Alcaraz is all set to make his second appearance at the Shanghai Masters. The third-seeded Spaniard received a bye into the second round, where he will take on Shang Juncheng on October 4. The winner of this match will face either Chinese wildcard Wu Yibing or 25th seed Nicolas Jarry in the third round.

Tennis icon Rafael Nadal intensifies hardcourt training ahead of ‘Six Kings Slam’ exhibition in Riyadh

Rafael Nadal has resumed training on the tennis court as he prepares for his participation in the ‘Six Kings Slams’ exhibition in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, scheduled from October 16-19.

Nadal hasn’t competed since the Paris Olympics, where he lost to eventual gold medalist Novak Djokovic in the singles second round with a score of 1-6, 4-6. In doubles, Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz were defeated 2-6, 4-6 by silver medalists Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram in the quarterfinals.

Although Nadal was originally set to participate in both the US Open and the Laver Cup, he opted to withdraw from both tournaments. The Spaniard’s next appearance will be at the ‘Six Kings Slam’ exhibition alongside Novak Djokovic, Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev, and Holger Rune.

Nadal shared on Instagram that he has begun practicing, posting a story of himself hitting forehands at his tennis academy in Manacor.

Watch the video here:

Additionally, Nadal has been named to Spain’s team for the Davis Cup Final Eight in Malaga, taking place from November 19-21. The Spanish roster includes Nadal, Alcaraz, Roberto Bautista Agut, Marcel Granollers, Pablo Carreno Busta, and team captain David Ferrer.

Zizou Bergs discusses tactics to combat intimidation from Rafael Nadal’s pre-match routines

Belgian tennis player Zizou Bergs has discussed the approach he developed with his coaching team to prevent being intimidated by Rafael Nadal’s pre-match rituals. The two players faced each other once on the ATP Tour during the first round of the 2024 Italian Open, where Nadal triumphed with a score of 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

In an exclusive interview with CLAY magazine, Bergs revealed that he prepared himself to witness Nadal’s intense pre-match routine, which includes aggressive jumping and sprinting in the tunnel before entering the court.

The 25-year-old explained that he and his team evaluated various scenarios to address the intimidation aspect of Nadal’s routine, ultimately deciding that the best strategy was to stay focused on himself.

“Luckily the day we played in Rome it didn’t, because I was prepared, I saw him doing it with some other guys. Tennis players talk about it. This is something we attacked early, when we knew we had to play against Nadal,” the Belgian tennis star said.

“And in the beginning, it was just like, okay, I’m ready to beat my opponent. Even though he was doing his thing in the tunnel, you know. So I just took my time to be really focused on myself. And to really have this feeling like I’m going to win the match. Otherwise, would be impossible,” he added.

Zizou Bergs will be kicking off his Shanghai Masters campaign with a first-round match against home favorite Zhang Zhizhen on October 3. The winner of this match will take on ninth seed Grigor Dimitrov in the second round.

Andrey Rublev shares alarming amputation threat during surgery ahead of the China Open

Andrey Rublev revealed that he faced the possibility of amputation during a surgical procedure following his US Open fourth-round run, expressing relief that everything turned out fine.

In an interview on the BetBoom tennis channel on Telegram, the Russian player shared that he unexpectedly fell ill with a condition typically seen in children just before heading to Beijing for the China Open. Consequently, Rublev had to undergo urgent surgery.

Rublev made a startling statement, noting that if the surgery had lasted more than five hours, the doctors would have been forced to amputate. Fortunately, the procedure was completed within the necessary timeframe, enabling him to recover swiftly.

“After the US Open, I was preparing for China, and a couple of days before departure, the unexpected happened. As I was told, this (i.e. the issue he had) usually happens to children. I needed surgery, which, if not done, could lead to amputation,” Andrey Rublev said (Translation from Russian to English).

“It was lucky that in the first 3-4 hours it all turned out, because after 5-6 hours, amputation was mandatory. As a result, everything was done, everything went well and ended better than expected. I managed to recover quickly,” he added.

Fourth seed Andrey Rublev reached the quarterfinals in Beijing, where he lost 5-7, 4-6 to Chinese wildcard and eventual semifinalist Yunchaokete Bu. The Russian tennis star will now compete in the Shanghai Masters in both single and doubles events. The former World No. 5, seeded sixth, received a bye into the singles second round, where he will take on either Jakub Mensik or Pedro Martinez.

In doubles, Andrey Rublev and partner Karen Khachanov will face seventh seeds Michael Venus and Neal Skupski on October 4.