{"id":2074090,"date":"2026-08-02T18:46:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T15:46:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2074090"},"modified":"2026-08-02T18:46:01","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T15:46:01","slug":"david-ferrer-compares-rafael-jodar-to-rafael-nadal-and-issues-carlos-alcaraz-comeback-verdict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2074090","title":{"rendered":"David Ferrer compares Rafael Jodar to Rafael Nadal and issues Carlos Alcaraz comeback verdict"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"ps-article-content rounded-lg lg:mt-5 lg:border lg:border-card lg:bg-card lg:shadow-primary\">\n<header>\n<h1 class=\"py-4 text-xl font-normal text-title sm:text-2xl\">David Ferrer compares Rafael Jodar to Rafael Nadal and issues Carlos Alcaraz comeback verdict<\/h1>\n<div class=\"my-2 flex items-center justify-between\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/author\/oliver-paton\" class=\"text-sm font-normal !text-author\"><br \/>\n                            Oliver Paton                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <time class=\"ml-3 text-sm font-normal text-info md:ml-4\" datetime=\"02 Aug 2026 7:46 PM\" data-ps-date=\"02 Aug 2026 7:46 PM\" data-ps-datetime=\"1785696361\"><br \/>\n                            02 Aug 2026 7:46 PM                        <\/time>\n                    <\/div>\n<div class=\"hidden justify-end space-x-4 text-xl sm:flex sm:!opacity-100\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"><br \/>\n                            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"mx-auto !my-0 hidden dark:block h-6\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/content\/themes\/tennis365-sportsui\/img\/png\/preferred_source_badge_dark.png\" alt=\"Add as a preferred source on Google\" width=\"76\" height=\"24\"><br \/>\n                    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appearance-none border-none !text-share-icon outline-none hover:!text-share-icon-active sm:hidden\" data-title=\"David Ferrer compares Rafael Jodar to Rafael Nadal and issues Carlos Alcaraz comeback verdict\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/button>\n                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5 border-b border-page\"><\/div>\n<section>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5\">\n<figure class=\"aspect-h-9 aspect-w-16 relative\">\n                                        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1320\" height=\"742\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"w-full h-full object-cover object-center !my-0\" src=\"https:\/\/d2me2qg8dfiw8u.cloudfront.net\/content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Carlos-Alcaraz-Rafael-Jodar-1320x742.jpg\" alt=\"Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Jodar\">                <\/figure><figcaption class=\"flex items-center space-x-3 border-b border-mobile-caption px-3 lg:border-caption\">\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-1.5 break-words !text-xs !text-content\">\n                                Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Jodar                            <\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<div class=\"ciam-article-t365\"><!-- Article Start --><\/p>\n<p>David Ferrer believes Rafael Jodar reminds him of tennis legend <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/rafael-nadal\">Rafael Nadal<\/a> as a teenager and is confident Carlos Alcaraz can soon challenge for Grand Slam titles again.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/rafael-jodar\">Jodar<\/a> is through to the Washington Open final, his first appearance in an ATP 500 championship match, after defeating Arthur Fils, Kei Nishikori, Lorenzo Musetti and Alejandro Tabilo.<\/p>\n<p>Awaiting him in the final is Taylor Fritz, with the pair having met just once before \u2013 at this year\u2019s Delray Beach Open, where the American prevailed in straight sets.<\/p>\n<p>The Spaniard\u2019s rise has been remarkably rapid. After winning three ATP Challenger titles in 2025, Jodar broke into the world\u2019s top 100 in March this season, climbing more than 400 ranking places in just 12 months.<\/p>\n<p>He then captured his maiden ATP Tour title at the Marrakech Open at just 19 years old, dropping only one set throughout the tournament.<\/p>\n<p>Jodar followed that up by reaching the semi-finals in Barcelona and the quarter-finals in both Madrid and Rome, joining Alcaraz and Nadal as the only Spanish teenagers to reach the last eight at both events in the same season.<\/p>\n<p>As a result of his run in Washington, Jodar is guaranteed to break into the world\u2019s top 15 and would climb to No 11 by defeating Fritz in the final.<\/p>\n<p>Ferrer, a former world No 3 and French Open finalist, reflected on the youngster\u2019s rapid rise, drawing comparisons with Nadal.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Latest Tennis News<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/atp-tour\/jack-draper-explains-comeback-taken-long-amid-injury-perfect-storm\">Jack Draper explains why his comeback has taken so long amid injury \u2018perfect storm\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/roger-federers-former-coach-hails-alex-eala-naomi-osaka-masterclass\">Roger Federer\u2019s former coach hails Alex Eala after Naomi Osaka masterclass<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose of us in tennis were already aware of Rafa\u2019s progress, but it\u2019s true that he\u2019s [Jodar] had a fantastic year,\u201d the Spaniard said during an interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/cadenaser.com\/nacional\/2026\/08\/01\/david-ferrer-se-deshace-en-elogios-hacia-rafa-jodar-su-madurez-me-recuerda-mucho-a-nadal-cadena-ser\/\">El Larguero on SER<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s broken into the top 20 by beating some outstanding players. Alongside Carlos Alcaraz, they represent the future of Spanish tennis. Carlos is already an established star, and Rafa is just beginning what I believe will be a great professional career.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe goes into every match without being intimidated by players he used to watch on television or in the stadiums where he always dreamed of competing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe isn\u2019t afraid. He reminds me a lot of Rafa Nadal when he was 17, and also of Carlos Alcaraz. They\u2019re the kind of players who don\u2019t feel stage fright at such a young age.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s very unusual at 19 or 20. Nadal, Alcaraz, and now J0dar have all broken through those mental barriers, and it\u2019s exciting to see a player like that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis week has been very positive and his recovery is progressing well. It won\u2019t be long before we see him back on the court.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Jodar has been one of the standout players on tour in recent months, world No 3 Alcaraz has been sidelined since April with a wrist injury.<\/p>\n<p>The seven-time Grand Slam champion is expected to return at the Cincinnati Masters (August 13\u201326), where he will be the defending champion.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the lengthy lay-off, Ferrer believes Alcaraz has everything required to compete for the sport\u2019s biggest titles once again.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe needs to regain his match rhythm,\u201d stated the former world No 3.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt first, things will be more difficult, and that\u2019s completely normal. But with a player like him, you never know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s a player of Rafa\u2019s calibre, so I wouldn\u2019t rule out him doing something extraordinary. The most important thing is that the injury doesn\u2019t leave any lasting effects.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnce he\u2019s able to compete at the highest level again, I think it will only be a matter of time before he\u2019s fighting to win Grand Slams.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s an injury that other great players have suffered before. Rafa had a similar one and came back to the highest level, so that gives you confidence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe exchange messages to see how his recovery is progressing. Carlos is surrounded by the right people, and they\u2019re managing everything very well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- Article End --><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>David Ferrer compares Rafael Jodar to Rafael Nadal and issues Carlos Alcaraz comeback verdict Oliver Paton 02 Aug 2026 7:46 PM Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Jodar David Ferrer believes Rafael Jodar reminds him of tennis legend Rafael Nadal as a teenager and is confident Carlos Alcaraz can soon challenge for Grand Slam titles again. Jodar [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,249],"class_list":["post-2074090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-tennis365-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2074090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2074090"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2074090\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2074090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2074090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2074090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}