ATP Journey
On this day: Alcaraz makes his debut in 2022.
At the age of 19, Alcaraz became the youngest player in the PIF ATP rankings
September 12, 2025
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Carlos Alcaraz won the U.S. Open in 2022, becoming the youngest No. 1 in the PIF ATP rankings.
Jerome Coombe
Carlos Alcaraz started the second week of 2022 as the world number 33, but in nine months he surpassed the sport’s elite to become the youngest No. 1 in history in the PIF ATP rankings on September 12.
The Spanish broke into the scene with an 18-year-old prodigy in 2021, and only with his electricity can he attract people’s attention. Alcaraz has made sure he will start his first full season on the ATP Tour with his first tour title in Umag, making sure he will be in the top 50 in the world in 2022. From the beginning, his ability to shoot and adapt is unproven.
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Alcaraz announced early glory in 2022, dazzling on his way to the ATP 500 Crown in Rio in Rio before reaching the semifinals of Indian Wells – where he pushed his idol Rafael Nadal into three sets. He then won his first ATP Masters title in Miami. Despite Alcaraz’s disappointing first-round exit in Monte-Carlo, the teenager made the first top ten, but didn’t stop there.
On the land of the country, the 19-year-old won consecutive championships in Barcelona and Madrid, where he became the youngest player to beat Nadal and Novak Djokovic in the same match. Alcaraz entered the North American hard lineup swing and won 4,270 PIF ATP ranking points, not only cementing his position in the U.S. Open favorite, but also making him strongly compete for the Nitto ATP finals.
On the meadows of Flushing, the third seed Alcaraz was exhausted in the second week. His epic five-hour, 15-minute victory over Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals – the third-longest game in U.S. Open history – was followed by five games against Frances Tiafoe, with a final against Casper Ruud. The championship game against the Norwegian doubled, it was a straightforward gunfight, entering the world number one.
This tension is obvious inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, but Alcaraz keeps his nerves in four exciting scenes to secure the top spot, becoming the youngest player in PIF ATP ranking history for 19 years and four months.
“It’s crazy for me. I never thought I would achieve something like that at 19,” Alkaraz said after the final. “Everything is so fast. It’s incredible for me. I’ve dreamed of dreams since I was a kid because I started playing tennis. Of course, it was amazing to me to lift this trophy today.”
Although Alcaraz suffered a belly tear that left him out of the Nitto ATP final in Turin, where he qualified in pole position, he was still attending the ATP end-of-year No. 1 by PIF HONORS. Espanyol continued to spend his first 20 weeks at the summit, and he became the youngest player in history to win the award.
