'He’s lucky, his opponents are of a lower calibre': Nadal's blunt take on Carlos Alcaraz after Australian Open 2026 triumph

Having beaten Novak Djokovic in the final of the Australian Open 2026, Carlos Alcaraz has completed the career Grand Slam at just 22 years of age. Alcaraz's win further underscores that he is the undisputed ruler of the sport among the current crop of players and will likely dominate the court for at least another decade.While Alcaraz's emergence to the top marks a fresh era in the sport, those who witnessed the two decades of continuous brilliance of the Big 3- Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Djokovic- assert that Alcaraz, though world-class, is not in the company of the same formidable competition that his predecessors were. Notably, Federer and Nadal have retired, and Djokovic is in the twilight stage of his career.Toni Nadal says Carlos Alcaraz is 'lucky'Rafael Nadal's uncle and former coach Toni Nadal shares the same sentiment about Alcaraz. Nadal raved about the fitness, technicality and game of Alcaraz but also labelled him "lucky", as Rafa, Roger and Novak were constantly challenged by Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, and Juan Martin Del Potro back in the day.“He has exceptional physical attributes, excellent technical skill, and on top of that, he’s lucky: his opponents are of a lower calibre,” Nadal said in an interview on Onda Cero radio. “Before, when you went out to play against [Juan] Del Potro, [Andy] Murray, or [Stan] Wawrinka, you knew you were going to suffer and that the match was going to be tough. If they had a great day, they could beat you.”The Italian Jannik Sinner has risen as the fierce rival of Alcaraz, and the two have traded the last 9 Grand Slam titles with each other. As these two are running a race of their own, the others have completely fallen out of the picture, leaving the competition's demanding fans disappointed.Alcaraz-Sinner dominate the circuitThe current ATP rankings also suggest the same. World No. 2 Sinner sits on 10,300 points after losing a huge number of them in Melbourne. He still stands a staggering 5,000 points ahead of Djokovic in third, showing what gap the now big two have created. When choosing between them, Nadal backed up his prior statements and stuck with Alcaraz.“Personally, I much prefer Alcaraz. When they face each other, the match depends more on what the Murcian does,” he said. “Looking at the numbers, I think Sinner is a little more reliable; he’s a little more solid," he said.