Learn more about the 19-year-old #NextGenATP Spaniard

Martin Landaluce had just finished a training session when he tuned into the Roland Garros final, only to find his friend and fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in deep trouble. By the time Landaluce was able to watch the match, Alcaraz trailed Jannik Sinner two sets to love.

What unfolded then was nothing short of history, an epic turnaround that tennis fans have enjoyed conversing about in the days since. Alcaraz saved three consecutive championship points in a five-hour, 29-minute instant classic to capture his fifth major title, much to the enjoyment of #NextGenATP teen Landaluce.

“I think it’s the best [match] I’ve ever seen, the best final for sure,” Landaluce told ATPTour.com at the Lexus Nottingham Open, an ATP Challenger Tour 125 event. “And I think they played unbelievable every point. The fifth set was incredible. The last tie-break, they did amazing things. I enjoyed watching it and watching Carlos win was great.”

It All Adds Up

The same tournament where Alcaraz lifted his first Slam trophy — at the 2022 US Open — Landaluce won the boys’ singles event at Flushing Meadows.

Landaluce has spoken about how he has leaned on Alcaraz for advice, yet sometimes those lessons require no explanation — just watching the 20-time tour-level titlist’s unshakable resilience and fierce belief come alive in the Roland Garros final is enough of a teaching moment itself.

“It looked pretty bad, but I think he’s always thinking he’s going to win the match,” Landaluce said of Alcaraz, with whom he shares an agent. “He wasn’t playing at his best [at the start and] Sinner was doing unbelievable things. [Carlos] was there putting balls in, started playing better and better. He’s a beast.”

Landaluce is a former junior No. 1, making him one the brightest young prospects from historically tennis-rich Spain. Currently ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, the #NextGenATP star is determined to follow in the footsteps of the Spanish icons he grew up idolizing. Based in Madrid, he considers the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar his “second home”, where he has practised with the 92-time tour-level titlist Rafael Nadal.

Last year, Landaluce became the fifth Spaniard since 2000 to win an ATP Challenger Tour title at age 18 or younger. The first four players all ascended to the Top 10 of the PIF ATP Rankings: Alcaraz, Rafael Nadal, Tommy Robredo and Nicolas Almagro.

Martin Landaluce is crowned champion at the Olbia Challenger.
Martin Landaluce at the 2024 Olbia Challenger. Credit: Yuri Serafini/MEF Tennis Events

Another valuable lesson that any fast-rising teenager can learn from Alcaraz, three years Landaluce’s senior, is keeping a healthy balance on and off the court.

“I think it’s one of the most important things,” Landaluce said. “There are players that only think about tennis and that’s pretty bad because if you lose, all your life — you lose on that day.”

Landaluce enjoys several hobbies such as playing guitar, boxing and reading. When he was “around age 14 or 15”, his parents, Alejandro and Elena, gifted a boxing bag for Christmas.

“It [is] like the best thing for stress. You leave all your energy there, the bad energy. And after, you feel amazing,” Landaluce said in a previous interview with ATPTour.com. “I started to improve. I was watching some videos on YouTube, learning how to do the technique. I did maybe two, three classes of boxing. I can say I know a bit.”

Landaluce has also begun his university studies online, juggling the demands of academics alongside his blooming tennis career. This year, he is taking five classes.

“I’m about to finish it. The same week I play qualifying for Wimbledon, I’ll be doing my exams. So it’s going to be two challenges,” said Landaluce, who will be aiming to make his Wimbledon main draw debut.

The Madrid native carves out time in the afternoon to study, sometimes even completing homework while receiving treatment from his physio. What has been the hardest class for the teenager?

“Economy, micro and macroeconomy — they are pretty hard,” Landaluce said. “I need a bit more of time to do them well.”

Landaluce’s commitment to studying mirrors his mindset on court, with a clear focus on perfecting his craft.

“You spend your life building the player you want to be,” said the No. 147 player in the PIF ATP Rankings. “Fighting during the matches, suffering. Then you realise every day you have to step up and do better and better and better day by day.”