Despite the news breaking over three months ago, Juan Carlos Ferrero’s ongoing media tour has kept the story of his departure from Carlos Alcaraz’s team ahead of the 2026 season the most talked-about off-court development in tennis this year.
The most recent instance came during Ferrero’s hour-long sit-down with Josep Pedrerol on the podcast El Cafelito. During the interview, the former coach of Alcaraz went into detail about what eventually led to a seemingly smooth-sailing partnership suddenly collapsing.
Ferrero Hints at Family Influence in Alcaraz Split
Although Ferrero did not name specific individuals, he more or less confirmed that people close to Alcaraz, including members of his family, also pushed for the separation after tensions grew between the camps, something that had been reported previously.
Ferrero also admitted multiple times that he would welcome the opportunity to either coach Alcaraz again or at least reconcile with him. The former World No. 1 said he would love to give the Spaniard a hug and explained that seeing Alcaraz win and appear in the news on social media now carries a bittersweet feeling for him.
Alcaraz Focused on Moving Forward
While Ferrero continues to give interviews about the split almost every other week, Alcaraz himself has firmly moved on from that chapter. The Spaniard has spoken very little about the situation during tournament media days, feeling that everything that needed to be said was already addressed in the heartfelt social media post announcing the split.
However, when asked how he would approach Indian Wells this year without Ferrero in his camp, a tournament where he has enjoyed significant success, Alcaraz remained confident in his response.
“I would say it is what it is. Obviously, I wouldn’t say it’s a new team. It’s mostly the same members; we just restructured a little bit. The members are the same as before; we’re just missing one. Every time I come back to a tournament I played last year, it feels a little bit different. You can feel it a bit, but we try to feel as comfortable as possible on and off the court.”
A Familiar Team Around Alcaraz
Although Alcaraz did not add another person to his team following Ferrero’s departure, he promoted Samuel Lopez to head coach, someone he has worked with for several years. That continuity within the team, along with the increased role of his brother Alvaro Alcaraz, has made the transition without Ferrero as smooth as possible.
The results have certainly backed that up. Alcaraz has started the season 12-0 and now arrives at Indian Wells looking to add a third title at the tournament to his rapidly growing list of achievements.
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images
