How it feels to have Alcaraz on your side: Team Europe stars weigh in!

Most weeks of the year, Carlos Alcaraz’s ATP Tour rivals are focused on how they might defeat him on some of the biggest stages in tennis. This week at the Laver Cup, some of those same rivals are discovering what it is like to have the Spaniard’s sublime talent on their own side for once.

On his singles debut at the teams event on Saturday in Berlin, Alcaraz downed Ben Shelton in straight sets to earn two crucial points for Team Europe. As his teammates supported from courtside, the No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings gave them a reminder of why he is such a tough opponent.

That winning smile ?

With the 6-4 6-4 victory over Shelton, @carlosalcaraz helps Team Europe level things with Team World.@LaverCup | #LaverCup pic.twitter.com/Ty8oCsfsWK

One of those watching from the Team Europe bench was Casper Ruud, who is yet to notch a win in four Lexus ATP Head2Head clashes against Alcaraz, including in the 2022 US Open final.

“I’m happy to have him on my team, that’s for sure,” Ruud told ATPTour.com prior to Alcaraz’s match against Shelton. “He’s an incredible player, so I’d rather have him on my team than against me. It’s cool. He’s going to come out explosively, as always, to hopefully get some important wins for Team Europe. We all know how great he is and it’s his debut so I’m sure he would like to do well.”

Alcaraz is lining up alongside fellow former World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev, World No. 2 Alexander Zverev, 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov, and former Grand Slam finalists Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas for Team Europe this year. A stellar cast, yet the presence of the Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion has made a clear impact to his team's spirits.

Competing in his fourth Laver Cup in Berlin, Tsitsipas is a relative veteran at the annual teams event compared to debutant Alcaraz. The Greek only had good things to say about the latest addition to Team Europe.

“I think he’s having a lot of fun. I think he enjoys the format,” said Tsitsipas of four-time major champion Alcaraz. “These are the rare occasions where you can have a teammate like that. Having the opportunity to be on the same side and strive for the same result and for the same accomplishment, that is something I would have never thought of. That is what makes the Laver Cup stand out, and I’m definitely loving it so far.”

Bjorn Borg is captaining Team Europe for the seventh and final time in Berlin. The legendary Swede could hardly have asked for a bigger weapon in his armoury as he plots his team’s bid for a first Laver Cup title since 2021.

“I am so excited to have all these guys in my team, and to have Carlos for the first time is exciting,” said Borg. “People are excited, and hopefully he’s going to win a few matches.”

So how did Alcaraz himself adjust to the unique dynamic of his ATP Tour rivals cheering him on Saturday against Shelton?

“It was fun. Honestly it was a great feeling having them supporting me behind, being like coaches,” the Spaniard told ATPTour.com after his 6-4, 6-4 triumph. “Having Bjorn on the bench as well, it is a great support for me. Normally I watch my team after every point. Here I'm looking at my partners and Bjorn [instead of] my team. So it is a different feeling.

“For me it was unique experience that I enjoyed a lot. Having, for example, Grigor [Dimitrov] all the time coaching me, telling me the tactics that I have to do during the match, it was crazy. Having Stefanos and all the players behind me in all the break times, it was great for me. I'm going to take this experience for a long time, and I honestly learn a lot from them as well.”

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