Coach Juan Carlos Ferrero says Carlos Alcaraz's 2022 goals are to "be competitive against the best players" and "move closer to the top 15" 

Carlos Alcaraz's head coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, recently revealed that his charge's main objective in 2022 will be to climb up the ATP rankings and potentially break into the top 15.

Alcaraz began the 2021 season ranked 141. However, his stellar performances on the court helped him finish the year in the 32nd spot in the ATP rankings.

The Spaniard won his first ATP title in Umag, Croatia and followed it up with a run to the quarterfinals of the US Open, defeating World No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas en route.

In a recent interview with the Gazette, former World No. 1, Juan Carlos Ferrero spoke about Alcaraz's goals for the upcoming season. He highlighted that he wants his charge to be competitive against the best players on the ATP tour and continue his upward trend in the rankings.

"The main challenge, as I have told other occasions, is to maintain the level of tennis he played in the last part of the season, to be competitive against the best tennis players, it is important for his performance, it will allow him to bring us closer to the top 15 of the classification. This would be the objective for next year," said Ferrero in the interview.

A recap of Carlos Alcaraz's 2021 season

Carlos Alcaraz at the ATP Next-Gen Finals

Widely considered to be Rafael Nadal's successor, Alcaraz landed two ATP titles in 2021. He first made his mark at the Andalucia Open, where he reached the semifinals. He then won his maiden ATP title after defeating Richard Gasquet in the final of the Croatia Open.

Alcaraz reached the quarterfinals of the US Open after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas and Peter Gojowczyk in the third and fourth rounds respectively. Unfortunately, an injury forced him to retire from his last-eight match against Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Two months later, the 18-year-old won the Next-Gen Finals in Milan. The Spaniard lost just one set over the course of his campaign as he secured the biggest title of his young career.

After a remarkable 2021 season, Alcaraz will be looking to kick on in 2022 and land a few more big titles.