Alcaraz is no longer the future, the King of New York has well and truly arrived

The Spanish teen has long been touted as the man to take over from the 'big three'. Rafael Nadal (36), Novak Djokovic (35) and Roger Federer (41) have dominated tennis for almost two decades, with the former two still cleaning up at Grand Slams at the ages of 35 and 36 respectively.

The likes of Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas have attempted to topple the imperious monopoly at the top of men's tennis, with very limited success. Medvedev and Thiem have had some success, but with the Russian struggling outside of the hard courts and Thiem with serious injury issues, Nadal and Djokovic have resumed their dominance.

Nadal took the first two Grand Slams of the year, beating Medvedev in Australia and Casper Ruud (23) in France, while Djokovic outplayed Kyrgios in Wimbledon.

It's not to say that any of them are bad players, but the void which is soon to be left is in need of being filled. Tennis might finally have that man.

Born in El Palmar in Spain, Alcaraz joined his soon-to-be coach Juan Carlos Ferrero's academy in 2018. He went on to make his ATP debut two years later at just 16 years old.

Alcaraz's 2022 year has been nothing short of awe-inspiring. After starting the year with a five-set loss to Matteo Berrettini in the third round of the Australian Open, many realised that he was destined for greatness. 

His maiden Masters 1000 victory in Miami, where he became the youngest person to ever clinch that crown. But more impressively, Alcaraz won the Madrid Open, beating the top three seeds, Nadal, Djokovic and Zverev as he stormed to the title.

He became the first teenager to beat Nadal on clay, the first player to beat Nadal and Djokovic back-to-back on the red dirt, while also becoming the first man since 2007 to beat three top-five seeds on the way to a Masters victory.

It was evident that Alcaraz was a force of nature. He plays tennis like a relentless tidal wave. But despite that, his rawness and immaturity were still on show, as he suffered defeats in the quarter-finals of Roland Garros to Zverev and round of 16 to Jannick Sinner at Wimbledon.

He headed into the US Open in relatively iffy form, with early exits in Canada and Cincinnati.

Oh, how that meant very little.

Alcaraz went on to claim the first of surely many Grand Slam titles as he beat Ruud in the final. His victory also meant that he became the youngest ever world No.1. Formerly a young pretender, the Spaniard is now sitting on a very comfortable and fitting throne. There can be no doubts about his ascendency to the top.

The run to the title was nothing short of inspirational. He became the first man since Stefan Edberg in 1992 to win round four, quarter-final and semi-final matches in five sets. Two of those went past 2am, including an absolute classic against Jannik Sinner (21) (another star who is shining ever so brightly). 

His Grand Slam victory made him the youngest man since Nadal in 2005 to win a major, furthering comparisons between the pair.

But the similarities between Alcaraz and Nadal are realistically only due to their nationalities and sheer tenacity. Alcaraz is very much his own man. His playing style is more like Djokovic if a comparison is to be forced.

The scary aspect of his game is the maturity far beyond his years. His all-round game is already that of a seasoned pro. Huge groundstrokes are supported by his gorgeous touch at the net. His movement around the court is reminiscent of a terrier, sprinkled with the willingness and boldness to pull off inch-perfect drop shots that seem to just graze the net. He is an artist at work, and his racket is his paintbrush. The court is his canvas.

He is already a cold-blooded killer. He plays with ice in his veins in the biggest moments. He never plays safe when under pressure, but instead the moment seems to give him a shot of adrenaline - he thrives.

This is emphasised by the fact that he was the first man to save a match point en route to the US Open final since Stanilas Wawrinka in 2016. This came against Sinner.

He also saved two set points in the crucial third set in the final.

He has a long way to go to achieve the career of arguably the greatest men's player of all time Nadal, but at the same age, Alcaraz is potentially a far more complete player than him.

The teen has gained the love of fans around the world because of his ability to seemingly make every single match he plays a Hollywood blockbuster. 

Even when he wins easily, he has about three or four points that can make it on Tennis TV's Instagram highlights reel. On other days, he just decides to win five hour long epics. Standard.

He goes out onto a tennis court to win, but is an absolute must that he has fun. It seems he would rather lose entertainingly, than win ugly.

There have been many false dawns in men's tennis before, with the big three continuing to have a stranglehold over the Grand Slams. But this feels different. 

ESPN commentator Patrick McEnroe so too.

"It's remarkable to watch Alcaraz play this game, how he's elevated the tempo of this game along with Sinner and Tiafoe and other young guys," he said on Sunday.

"To me it really is the start, it's not the finish, but it's the start of the real changing of the guard in men's tennis."

Alcaraz is now a certified superstar, and it is scary to think what he could achieve. With the likes of Nadal and Djokovic coming to the end of their careers, it isn't totally inconceivable to think that he may reach the 20 Grand Slam mark and get somewhat close to Nadal's current tally of 22.

It's a new but really exciting time for tennis with Alcaraz slowly transitioning to the forefront of it. It would be foolish to totally write off the old guard, but it's fair to say that the future has finally arrived.