"Carlos Alcaraz has made everything perfect at the right time" - Andrey Rublev

Andrey Rublev comes into the Madrid Masters in fine form, having recently triumphed at the Serbia Open after beating Novak Djokovic in the final. The Russian will play his first match of the Madrid Open against British wildcard Jack Draper.

In an interview with El Mundo, the 24-year-old shared his thoughts about Carlos Alcaraz and drew similarities between their respective Spanish coaches. Rublev also lauded the youngster's love for the game in addition to the enormous talent that Alcaraz possesses.

"He has made everything perfect at the right time. The first thing is the enormous talent of him. The second thing is that he really loves tennis, playing, working, not what he can get from tennis, that doesn't matter to him, and you can easily see that," Rublev said.

Alcaraz celebrates with coach Ferrero at the Miami Open

How does the Carlos Alcaraz-Juan Carlos Ferrero coaching combination compare to Andrey Rublev's association with Fernando Vicente?

During the interview, Rublev was asked if he found similarities between his association with Fernando Vicente and the Alcaraz-Juan Carlos Ferrero coaching combination.

The Russian emphasized that Ferrero began coaching Alcaraz at an early age and that he couldn't imagine himself with a different coach on tour. Rublev also mentioned that both he and the 18-year-old Spaniard took three or four seasons to reach the level they are currently at.

"Yes, it's similar, but Carlos started with Ferrero when he was 14 or 15 years old; In my case, I started with 19. I have a great connection with Fernando, on and off the pitch, and I can't imagine myself with another coach. It took me three or four seasons to get to the level where I am now. "

"It has taken him a similar amount of time to be where he is, but he started working properly long before I did. I repeat, he has done everything when he had to do it and has all the virtues outlined. That's why he's so good already now."

Rublev, who has been a quarterfinalist at three Grand Slams, also opined that Juan Carlos Ferrero is the perfect choice for Alcaraz.

"At his age, he has made a perfect choice with Juan Carlos Ferrero. It is a magnificent combination."

The Russian, meanwhile, has made great strides under the tutelage of Spaniard Fernando Vicente. He's been working with the former player since 2017.

After making it to the French Open and US Open quarterfinals in 2020, Rublev went on to reach the last-eight at the 2021 Australian Open. He broke into the top-10 of the ATP rankings in October 2020 and has been there ever since.