[upbeat instrumental music playing]
[Kay Adams]
It's a beautiful Sunday in Las Vegas.
Netflix is live right here
in the heart of the Strip
at Mandalay Bay today.
This it is the center of the tennis world.
Thousands here ready to welcome
two of the greatest
and most exciting players on the planet.
Listen to that crowd.
Spanish fans here in full force cheering,
all welcoming back a true GOAT.
Rafael Nadal looking healthy,
looking happy, looking smiley.
We're celebrating here.
He gets set to take on
the sport's youngest superstar.
There he is, 20-year-old Carlos Alcaraz,
number two in the world,
reigning Wimbledon champ.
Today, Rafa and Carlos
meet in the first-ever Netflix Slam.
[Jon Hamm] A tale of a pair of stars
a generation apart,
a pair of Spaniards who've become two
of the most famous athletes in the world.
[announcer] Rafael Nadal.
[Hamm] Rafael Nadal's legacy
seems already secured for all-time
with 22 Grand Slam trophies.
But now, a new force has emerged
from his own country.
And at age 20, Carlos Alcaraz
has already certified himself a superstar.
There will only be so much time
when Rafa and Carlos could share
a court like this and do battle.
Only so many days and nights
like this one.
Rafa, Carlos, The Netflix Slam.
[jazzy intro music playing]
[Adams]
Here we go. Inside Michelob ULTRA Arena,
inside the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino
in Las Vegas.
Welcome to The Netflix Slam.
It's a live special being streamed
all around the world.
We're bringing you the youngest
and most electric superstar in the game
taking on his idol, an all-time great.
Carlos v. Rafa just moments away.
I'm Kay Adams, and I'm literally
the luckiest person in Las Vegas.
I get to hang out with these guys.
Let me introduce you to my panel.
Tennis reporter, analyst, insider.
He was doing Romanian deadlifts
in Mandalay Bay at 4:00 a.m.
Prakash Amritraj...
- Talk to him, Kay. Talk to him now.
- ...is here.
- Talk to him.
- [Adams] And then these two.
For the first time,
I believe ever on the set, though.
You are Pickleball Slam champions.
Reigning champions here.
We have US Open champ,
host of the fastest
growing podcast around.
Everybody subscribe to Served.
It's Hall of Famer Andy Roddick,
and an honor
to be in the presence
of eight-time Grand Slam champ,
an absolute icon, Andre Agassi. Hi, guys.
- Hi.
- It is an honor for me to be up here
talking tennis with you
instead of out there playing against you.
And how good is the energy in this crowd?
I mean, here we are in Vegas.
When I turned pro 100 years ago,
I just had to answer questions
about, you know,
"What's it like living in a hotel?
Do they have schools? Do they have..."
Now we've got Formula One.
We've got the Super Bowl.
- Tennis.
- [Adams] Yeah.
It's a win for Vegas and the sport.
I love it.
[Amritraj] Talk about
the feel of this thing here.
With this thing absolutely packed,
you have tennis at the forefront.
It really does feel like
a heavyweight fight.
And Alcaraz's favorite
is, of course, Rocky.
So we've got a little Adonis Creed
versus Rocky Balboa today.
That's the feel we've got.
And what an honor it is
to play one of your idols.
I got to play this guy many times
in these one-day kind of exhibitions,
got my a*s kicked most of the time.
But it was still a thrill for me
to be up here,
to see the energy in this building,
and listen,
nothing is guaranteed with Rafa
past today, right?
He has struggled with injuries.
We hope we're gonna see him
at Roland-Garros.
We hope we see him
for as long as we possibly can.
But nothing is a given.
I cannot wait to see him play
this young upstart Alcaraz.
You welcomed Rafa to the US Open in 2003.
Of course, he had some, like,
140 mph situations to start
and we haven't seen him stateside...
I did my homework, Prakash.
We haven't seen him stateside
in 18 months.
How great is it
to have him back on the court?
It's fantastic.
The sport, since the moment he entered,
has been better
for having had Rafa Nadal in the building.
And is... I view this today
as a celebration,
of him against the person
who is going to hopefully,
follow his legacy with Carlos Alcaraz.
I feel lucky to be in the building.
And we're going to absolutely see
what we've learned
to appreciate most about Rafa,
which is he takes nothing for granted
on the tennis court.
He won't take anything
for granted tonight,
given his preparation and the dreams
he has of going through
this last phase of his career
the way he'd hope.
And does anybody deserve
to go out of tennis
on their terms better than this guy?
I mean, easy guy to respect,
hard guy to play against,
and a beautiful, beautiful thing
for the sport
to have it here watching him.
[Amritraj] When this guy
came on the scene at 18,
won that first French Open,
but it was the longevity.
Would we see him achieve this career
with that physicality?
And he's done it. Look at these
stats over the course of a couple decades.
[Adams] 22 majors, 14 French Opens
as Andy reminded me of before.
Then we came on the air,
and let's talk about his opponent.
Rafa's 37. He's been there, done that.
Now you've got Carlos Alcaraz.
Prakash, you follow the tour.
What makes him so special?
And he's winning at such a young age.
Let's throw away the stats.
He's got a couple Slams,
barely 20 years old
and arguably more complete than Roger,
Rafa or Novak at this age,
which is even scary to think about.
But for me, it's the intangibles.
In the big moments, he always says,
"Listen, it's the three C's for me:
[in Spanish] Mind, heart, and guts.
He doesn't... He doesn't go into some
spreadsheet and supercomputer.
He feels it in those big moments.
And I mean, for guys who are just
in the legendary status of the game,
how much does that intangible
come into play in those moments?
The intangibles are huge,
no question about it.
That's what he's gonna
ultimately be measured against
when you talk about the three greatest.
He comes into it on paper,
athletically with arguably
the four most dominant shots
in the game of tennis, right,
from his speed, his RPMs,
his foot speed offensively, defensively,
you look at all that, but does he have
the ability to contain it
and to play day in, day out
like Rafa has shown
so that he's beating guys just...
Just enough
instead of having to play
so well to do it,
'cause the years get long,
but athletically speaking, he's unmatched.
Yeah, and listen, it was obvious
from when he came
and won his first major at the US Open,
which we're going to see here.
Won a bunch of five-set night matches.
Down a match point,
somehow, negotiates his way
through that draw.
Just an unreal effort.
You feel like he's just getting started,
and he won two Slams for practice.
I can't wait to see
the rest of his career.
[Adams] What's his ceiling?
[Roddick] I don't think there is one.
The Big Three have renegotiated
what a ceiling looks like.
Before he had won a Slam,
people were asking me,
"Is he gonna win ten?"
I'm like, "That's a little ridiculous."
When you have names like Agassi
and McEnroe, and Connors, who are 8-7.
But I think he's going to be in that range
for sure as... as bottom,
and he has the potential
to get double digits.
We have to reset our expectations.
Unquestionably. Great point.
But if you look at the RPMs
he puts on the ball,
maybe even more than Rafa,
his defensive skills,
maybe even better than Novak.
His touch and feel,
possibly even, you know,
Fed standard or higher, right?
So you're looking at all these parts
he brings on the table.
His biggest issue might be having
too many options.
What'll he do over the next few years?
- Can't wait to watch.
- Yeah, the toughest thing
about being able to hit every shot
is actually hitting every shot
and when. I didn't have those options.
I knew I was a chucker
off one side of my body,
so you negotiated a round that
and it made it a little simpler.
To Andre's point, he has many options.
He'll have to learn his pacing
in different matches.
But his top level
is as good as anyone in the sport.
I can't wait to check out the serves.
I want you to size up Carlos' serve.
I want to see some trick shots.
We'll get into all of it.
The vibe check is passing the test here
at the first-ever Netflix Slam.
And it's not just us, guys.
And it's not just, you know,
Lindsey Vonn and Matthew Stafford,
who I just saw behind me.
We have an amazing crew
and another familiar face
from in the arena today.
Mary Joe Fernandez is with us.
And she caught up with both players
moments ago.
Rafa, you have played all over the world.
What does it mean to you
to play in Las Vegas
for the very first time in your career?
Yeah, not only playing.
Being in Las Vegas for the first time.
No, I have been, uh...
Yeah, rough schedule.
I was not able to to visit many places,
but yesterday night
I was able to go around a little bit
And yeah, quite amazing,
especially during the night. The...
You know, the show that is...
Las Vegas is, for me,
something that needs... needs to be seen.
It's nice to have tennis in Vegas
'cause the big sporting events
have been coming here.
Last time you played Carlos
was a couple of years ago in Madrid.
Since then, he's won two Grand Slams,
he's hit number one.
What are you looking forward to
in playing him today?
Well, I mean, for me, it has been a while
since being in that... [sucks teeth] spot,
playing against a huge player like Carlos,
so, yeah, excited to play
here in Las Vegas
against... well, an amazing player.
So just... I'm going to try my best,
try to enjoy as much as possible
and try to create a good match,
and for me, it's a...
It's a good practice match, too.
- All right. Have fun out there.
- Thank you so much, Mary Joe.
Carlos, Las Vegas seems like
the perfect city for you to play tennis.
This is where stars come
to show off their talents.
How special is it to be
playing in Las Vegas for the first time?
Well, for me, it's really special,
you know, playing here with
a beautiful, beautiful crowd out there.
It's gonna be the first time
here in Las Vegas.
I've seen, you know, the city,
it's crazy and unbelievable.
So really looking forward
to playing, playing here.
I... I'm going to try to put my best game,
you know, my talent on the court
hitting great...
I think Las Vegas deserve it,
and I'll try to do it.
[Fernndez] You were only two years old
when Rafa won his first Grand Slam
in 2005.
You've admired him from a young age.
What is it like to play your idol?
Well, it's always great and special,
you know. I've...
I've played three times against him,
you know, official matches.
I really enjoyed every single match
that I played against him,
every single second that I spent time
with him on the court.
And, you know, facing him again
is so, so special, you know. [sucks teeth]
You know, seeing him
in the other part of the net
and try to learn from him
is so special.
So I'm going to try to take
the most advantage from that.
And, yeah, I think both of us,
we're going to enjoy this moment.
[Fernndez] Enjoy the match. Good luck.
Thank you very much. Thank you.
[Adams] MJ, thanks so much.
Quite a special matchup,
as Carlos just said.
You're taking a look right now
at the starts
of their careers, respectively.
Obviously a big difference.
Two years old, Carlos was,
when Nadal won his first major.
Both have had so much success.
We'll see what Carlos can do
up against his idol,
He mentioned he's faced him three times.
He's won in two against him. Now, Andre,
yes, this is an exhibition.
Yes, you know, it might be a little cute,
but you can't tell me that Nadal
is just gonna let him come in here
and have his way.
No, from a tennis perspective,
they're gonna be measuring each other up
very well tonight
because the true best in this game
push themselves as far as they can go.
When I look at all those stats
at 20 years old,
it's incredibly, incredibly impressive.
But I also look at Carlos and think,
"Is it possible you can be that kind
and that happy
and dominate the game of tennis?"
Is that Is that achievable?
Yeah, I... Apparently, yes.
I certainly didn't operate that way.
I've seen you in your worst moments
and your best
but you didn't operate that way either.
But you get this amount of energy.
You hear the music thump and you get
to walk out and you have a goal.
You wanna win this match. Need it.
Rafa has a question mark
about where he's at.
Carlos hasn't won a tournament
since Wimbledon.
They could both use a nice performance
going into Indian Wells and the tour.
There's something to be said
for how big this moment is.
Carlos shines there.
I mean, I remember
when he was just even a younger kid,
played Rafa in Madrid, in Spain.
Rafa had just been named
the greatest athlete in Spain
over the last 100 years.
The King of Spain was there.
And this kid shined. He shined,
He looked like he owned the moment.
So, this arena, this atmosphere in Vegas,
- he'll bring the noise.
- [Adams] They both will.
Let's meet the players.
They're just about ready
to take the court.
One of the true GOATs of tennis
challenged by a young superstar
just on his way.
[crowd cheering]
[Hamm] At the age of 20,
he has pronounced the start of a new era
with his astounding rise.
For so long, we wondered
what kind of talent could emerge
to supplant the sport's
greatest generation.
The answer is Carlos Alcaraz.
- [captivating instrumental music playing]
- [crowd cheering]
[announcer] This 20-year-old from Spain
picked up a few skills
at the Nadal Tennis Academy as a teenager.
He made his ATP debut in 2020
at the age of 16.
In 2022, he won his first Grand Slam
Championship at the US Open,
becoming the youngest man
to reach number one in the world.
He won Wimbledon in 2023.
And we're excited to have him here today.
Please welcome Carlos Alcaraz!
[crowd cheering]
[Hamm] For more than two decades,
he sculpted a singular form of brilliance
on the court.
With unbreakable will,
indomitable strength
and unforgettable genius.
He is Rafa Nadal.
And his legend is not yet complete.
[crowd cheering]
[announcer] He has helped to raise
millions of dollars for charities.
A five-time Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship
Award winner,
an Arthur Ashe
Humanitarian of the Year recipient,
Fans' Favorite Award winner,
he has 92 career singles titles,
the youngest to ever win
a career Grand Slam,
Olympic gold medalist,
22 Grand Slam singles titles,
including 14 at the French,
playing for the first time in Las Vegas,
- please welcome Rafael Nadal!
- [crowd cheering]
[Adams] Rafael Nadal is back.
Andy, I'm looking at you.
The energy is insane.
What do you expect to see?
Both have something to prove.
[Roddick] Rafa is the most intense
warm-up player of all time.
The biggest delta between how fast
someone hits the ball in warm-up
versus when they get in the match,
and suddenly, you're in a 40-ball rally.
But we'll see if we get
the traditional Rafa sprint.
- That'd be...
- [Amritraj] I'm curious.
Is that an actual warm-up tactic
he needs to feel warm
or is he just trying
to lay it on you, mentally?
[Roddick] What's impossible
is going from Rafa
where he won't do it here
because it's an exhibition,
but when he hits one ball
at you as hard as he can,
hits one ball away from you,
then, all of a sudden,
you're at 30-all in the first game.
- [crowd cheering]
- That's a problem.
I want you have to challenge.
TV changeovers. Questions?
Heads, tails?
- [Alcaraz] I want heads.
- Heads.
[coins clinking]
It's heads.
- I said "heads."
- Heads, yeah.
Heads? Good.
- I'll receive.
- Receive.
Okay. Good match, guys.
Turn it on and off?
No. No picture.
- [crowd cheering]
- [Roddick] There's the run.
[Adams] Andy, you called it
and it happened.
Now, Andre,
what are your expectations for this match?
[Agassi] Here's the thing.
Most guys, you go to an event, get ready,
get the chance to play on the surface.
Here, they don't.
It's a new court, environment.
They hit this morning.
I guess they'll start
with serious athleticism,
give yourself distance
between the bounce and the ball,
and you're swinging the racket.
You wanna make sure
it's bouncing how you want
before you commit
to taking it a little early.
As this match goes on,
the aggression picks up
and we start to realize
why they're the best.
Early on, we'll see aggressive swings
to big parts of the court.
I don't think they'll be in a rush.
They wanna find the rhythm.
Carlos is coming off of an ankle injury.
Rafa's health has been dicey.
They'll find their feet
before they ramp it up.
Just on the way they play,
Rafa will take a bit more time
to settle into the match.
Carlos, he can come out hot right away.
When you think back to
when Rafa won the Aussie Open in '22,
he needed that 250 in Melbourne to win
before he found his best form.
Carlos, he just comes in there,
lights it up.
He may have a better start today.
I can't believe
it's their first time in Vegas.
Andre, you took them around,
- welcomed them to your home.
- I hosted them around,
and I got to ask them questions that
only I can probably have the nerve to ask,
- which is really kind of...
- Who's got a better golf game?
Hard to say
because Rafa's swing's not pretty.
But he gets the job done.
We'll get into that and get to see some
of the behind-the-scenes.
But we're ready and we will be in and out
with you guys all afternoon long.
Let's say hello
to the gents calling the action.
Hello, Patrick McEnroe.
Hello, four-time
Grand Slam champ, Jim Courier.
You guys look great.
What a family we have here. What a vibe.
Kay, you may not be aware of this,
or you probably are, because I know
you did your homework.
In the open era of men's tennis,
there have been six American men
that have gotten
to number one in the world.
We've got three of them here today,
two of them with you,
and I'm happy to be next to this man,
Mr. Jim Courier, who won four majors.
So, we've got the big hitters here, JC,
and we've certainly got
the big hitters on the court.
And these two guys...
You've been a part
of some generational changes in tennis.
The guys touched on that a little bit,
Andre and Andy, against each other,
you taking on Jimmy Connors,
of course, at the US Open,
my brother, p*stol Pete.
This is another one of those times.
Who would have thought
we'd seen two Spanish guys
- light up this place in Las Vegas?
- It's amazing.
The reference points
are important for tennis fans.
We saw Sampras and Federer
face off at Wimbledon.
Gave us more of an appreciation
for what Federer already was
and what he might become.
I think we see that
with Alcaraz playing Nadal again.
It's just a touch point for us
to know how great Alcaraz might be.
We know how amazing Nadal is,
and for me,
this is about an appreciation as well.
I don't know how much longer
we'll see Nadal.
For 20 years, he's been
one of the best athletes on Planet Earth.
But time is undefeated,
it's come for him and his body.
But it's awesome
to see him on the court right now.
It's always a thrill
to have Rafa in the building.
[McEnroe] Yeah, and Rafa coming in
with some major question marks
this time of year.
He hasn't been playing in the US
for 18 months.
He did play down in Australia.
Got a couple of wins down there.
But then, the hip injury, wasn't
the same that put him out for a bit.
So, he was able to get back in rehab.
He's hopeful, and we're hopeful
that he can play the rest of the season.
[Courier] This is great news to see him
because a lot of us,
after he got injured in Australia,
thought he might just bypass North America
and go straight to the clay courts
as he runs up to Roland-Garros,
which will certainly be
a major target for him,
and what he says,
is possibly his final season.
He's given himself room.
If his body is healthy,
I don't think he wants to leave the stage.
We certainly don't want him to.
But for Nadal to be here in Vegas
is a great sign that his body responded
after that little scare in Brisbane.
[McEnroe] I don't know if we should say
Carlos is in a slump.
But, of course, he's raised the bar
pretty high with his two major wins.
But as the guy said downstairs,
he hasn't won a title
since he won Wimbledon, of course,
had that epic match
with Djokovic in Cincinnati.
But since then,
he hasn't been in the final
and he comes in with a little bit
of an issue, too, at the ankle,
which he twisted in South America.
But he looks to be
feeling good at the moment.
[Courier] He played some solid tennis
in Australia, made the quarterfinals,
where Sascha Zverev really served him
off the court in a four-set win.
Some lessons learned,
I hope, from that match.
We'll get into that
as we get into this match with him.
There's so much to like about Alcaraz.
One thing that is a concern...
he's so athletic, and he wants
to chase every single ball down.
He has been a bit more injury-prone
than we would have hoped for him,
and certainly had that scare with
the ankle roll down in Rio just recently.
[McEnroe] But it sounds like,
from what we're hearing,
that he's good to go.
And, of course, our Mary Joe Fernndez
has a little bit of an update
on the situation
and the status of Mr. Alcaraz.
- Mary Joe.
- [Fernndez] Yes.
I asked Carlos about the injury.
It was only less than two weeks ago.
He said he attacked it right away
with his physical therapist.
He did a lot of mobility work on it,
trying to strengthen areas around it.
Didn't hit any ba*ls until Thursday,
but he said he tested the movement
the last couple days, he's good to go.
So, that's the best news.
And then, to add on
about the atmosphere, it is electric.
Everybody had their phones out.
It feels like a big concert
here in Las Vegas.
[McEnroe] Let the music begin.
And Alcaraz and Nadal have
played against each other three times.
Here is the head-to-head.
This is their fourth meeting, 2-1.
A couple of those in Madrid,
as you mentioned,
but the first time
in a long time for them.
So, I cannot wait to see
what they bring to bear.
And no, I agree with the boys on the desk.
They'll be bringing it,
and trying to give this crowd a good show.
But, no mistake, they're trying
to build momentum as well,
[Courier] It's impossible not to bring it
with the energy we're feeling here.
It's a sellout crowd.
[McEnroe] Catherine Zeta-Jones,
Michael Douglas in the house,
as well as many others.
And Nadal will begin
the proceeding on his serve.
Both players have already been in the US
for a week or so,
getting out to Indian Wells
to practice there,
that tournament
getting underway next week.
But it's all about Vegas now.
[Alcaraz] I got you.
[line umpire] Fault.
[Nadal grunts]
[crowd cheering]
[Courier] Do you like apples?
How about them apples?
[Courier] Sheesh, what a first point.
[McEnroe] Nice way to start things off.
[Courier] Almost a no-look volley winner.
[line umpire] Fault.
[line umpire] Out.
[crowd clapping]
[chair umpire] Fifteen-all.
[McEnroe]
Andy and Andre talking a lot about...
[chair umpire] Thank you, production...
[McEnroe] The various weapons
in Alcaraz's arsenal.
He can take the ball early.
He can play the drop shot.
He can hit big off both wings,
very comfortable coming forward.
[chair umpire] Thank you once again.
[crowd clapping]
[chair umpire] 15-30.
[crowd shouting indistinctly]
[crowd cheering]
[Courier] Almost caught the sideline.
[chair umpire] Thirty-all.
[line umpire] Fault.
[line umpire] Out.
[McEnroe speaking indistinctly]
...for so long.
Obviously, he did play
a couple of matches in Australia.
- But he didn't...
- [chair umpire] 40-30.
...the entire year last year.
What are you looking for early
to check on his overall fitness?
[Courier] It's about the movement.
[McEnroe] Yeah.
[line umpire] Fault.
[Courier] How much do you trust yourself?
- [line umpire] Out.
- [chair umpire] Game, Nadal.
[McEnroe] Nadal opens
The Netflix Slam with a hold.
[chair umpire] First game.
[Courier] It's been a struggle for Nadal,
since he hurt his abdominal
a couple of Wimbledons ago,
and had to default that semifinal
against Nick Kyrgios.
He'd won the two majors leading into that.
He was going for the Calendar Slam,
and then, wasn't able to play
the rest of the season.
And then, 2023, the hip injury,
that was real problematic for him.
At the start of the season,
he wasn't able to play.
Just a 1-in-3 record, Patrick,
and then again,
just three matches in Brisbane.
Scared all of us that love Nadal so much.
And it's such a relief, really,
to see him out here tonight.
[McEnroe] He looked actually pretty good
in those first couple of wins
he had down in Brisbane,
one of the warm-up tournaments
for the first major of the year,
- the Australian Open.
- [chair umpire] Carlos Alcaraz to serve.
[McEnroe] This match
and, of course, Indian Wells
coming up next week in California.
So, they kick off of this second big part
of the tennis season.
Nadal has had a lot of success
in the California desert,
winning that title a few times.
- [line umpire] Fault.
- [chair umpire] Three play point.
[McEnroe] We have lines folks here.
We also have a challenge system in place.
So, players can ask for a review
if they want.
That one, overruled by the chair umpire.
So, for serves coming for Carlitos.
[line umpire] Out.
[Courier] Following up
on that question about
what should we be looking for with Nadal,
what does he need to get out
of a contest like this.
It's confidence. For a player
as accomplished as he is,
and it's remarkable
how accomplished he is.
He's a guy who
really thrives more on doubt.
He's not a guy
who believes in his own greatness.
He believes in, seemingly, the work,
and the momentum he can build.
[crowd exclaiming]
[McEnroe] Slaps another big point there.
[Courier] Contrast that for me, Patrick,
with someone like Federer
who seemed like
he could just go to sleep for six months
and come back
and still believe in his greatness.
It's different for Rafa.
[McEnroe] Yeah, he reminds me
a little bit of when
you were at your peak, Jim,
you'd play a lot,
you were known
as one of the hardest workers,
one of the fittest guys.
Nadal has always had that
as part of his MO.
Andre was talking about that at the top.
That physicality that he brings
with his demeanor,
but also with the topspin,
especially off that forehand
is something no one has ever really seen,
a ball that jumps that much off the court.
[line umpire] Ball.
[chair umpire speaks indistinctly]
[McEnroe] It's an out,
but clearly overruled by the chair umpire.
[Courier] Smooth little 128 miles an hour
over the high part of the net for Carlos.
[crowd clapping]
[McEnroe] Loose off that backhand.
So, Nadal,
with the early break point opportunity.
This would be exactly what
the great Rafa's looking for early.
And the second serve to work with.
Ooh, doubles back over. There is a grip.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] One of the things Andy Roddick
has talked about recently
has been the Alcaraz serve.
Maybe that's the part of his game
that needs to get better.
How about the scouting report
for both guys?
[Courier] So this is my view,
and I'm taking Nadal at his apex,
which he may not be at
as he works his way back,
but I love his serve placement.
It's not as speedy as Alcaraz's,
but he's a great serve manager.
Return of serve,
he's pioneered, Nadal,
with the deeper return,
that's been a game-changer.
The forehand, it's the best ever.
His forehand, amazing.
I'm gonna give the edge
to Alcaraz on the backhand.
It'll get a bit more conservative
as he goes on,
but I love his drop shot off of that side.
Nadal doesn't have that.
[McEnroe] There's that backhand.
[Courier] There's that variety
on the two-handed wing.
They both have amazing backhands,
and we're splitting hairs
when you look at it.
But for me, foot speed,
that's the only a clear-cut advantage
that I think Alcaraz has over Nadal.
[McEnroe] It's that ability to take
the ball right off the bounce
from Alcaraz.
With a clean winner.
[crowd clapping]
[chair umpire] Fifteen-all.
[McEnroe] Surprised you have Nadal
giving him the edge in the volley.
He's worked, he's become
an excellent volleyer, Nadal.
Alcaraz, pretty good up there, too, right?
[Courier] In time, maybe he'll be
as good as Rafa.
But Rafa has been the best finisher
at the net for the past...
Well, he and Roger basically.
[McEnroe] That time, Nadal tries
to take it early, but mistimes it.
How about this court surface?
Indoor court looks to be relatively slow.
You've played a lot of matches
in this type of environment.
How is it different from an outdoor court?
[Courier] They're lower bouncing
because it's an artificial court.
It's not built on concrete, it's on board,
so it's a lower bounce.
It's not as good for Nadal.
Famously, likes the high bounce
when he's getting the forehand up.
Make it easier for Alcaraz
to manage the backhand
against Nadal's forehand today.
[chair umpire] Thirty-all.
[McEnroe] Hard to see an open seat.
Absolutely packed.
Early afternoon start here in Las Vegas.
[crowd gasping]
[McEnroe] It's wide.
[crowd cheering]
[chair umpire speaking indistinctly]
Forty-thirty.
[Courier] I'll tell you one thing
that's crystal clear.
We've seen a lot of
quote-unquote "exhibition" tennis matches
that don't count for ranking.
They don't look a lot like this often.
There's high intensity
on both sides of the net right now,
this is awesome.
[crowd clapping]
[chair umpire] Deuce.
[McEnroe]
Alcaraz will look to be aggressive...
off that return of serve when he can.
[McEnroe] An authentic start for Nadal.
[crowd cheering]
Anything in the middle of the court,
with that forehand, it's lights out.
[chair umpire] Nadal.
[McEnroe] Game point.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] What a shot!
What a serve and volley from...
Rafael Nadal.
Well, exactly what he was hoping for
in the opening stages of this one.
You were mentioning, Jim, the "no" look.
We got two of them so far
in the first three games.
[Courier] This is insane.
Perfectly timed and thumped away.
Sky hook and a beauty.
[McEnroe] Yeah, it's live on Netflix.
Mary Jo Fernndez,
with Juan Carlos Ferrero,
the coach of Alcaraz.
MJ.
Thanks, Patrick.
Juan Carlos, so good to have you.
Former number one in the world,
winner of the French Open.
Early going here, for Carlos.
How's the ankle?
What are you looking for
with his movement in this one?
Yeah, the ankle.
I think we recovered as fast as we could.
It was something difficult for us.
But at the end, you know, he's very young.
And for these kind of injuries,
he recovers very well.
The main goal is not to hurt him so much,
try to play as normal as we can.
He's trying to move...
you know, with a little bit of...
taking care of himself.
But it's a good practice, a good match,
always to play against Rafa.
It's a very nice opportunity
to learn from him.
And, yeah, try to be a good match
to take to the benches
for Indian Wells, as well.
[Fernndez] And you saw something
in Carlos at an early age.
What has it been like to coach someone
with so many strengths,
so many weapons?
[Ferrero] At the beginning, it was
difficult because all these weapons,
you have to organize everything.
Because at the beginning,
you misunderstand
when you have to hit the ball
or where you are at the court,
or when it's time to hit it.
Sometimes it's difficult
to put everything in the same place.
But then, at the end, to have the weapons,
it's absolutely unbelievable.
It's been an honor to...
You know, to coach someone
with these kind of characteristics.
And I'm very happy about it.
[Fernndez] Continued success.
[Ferrero] Thank you.
[Fernndez] Patrick.
[McEnroe] Thank you, Mary Joe.
Not only a French Open winner, Ferrero,
but also a US Open Finalist,
losing to Andy Roddick.
And Nadal, now with a 3-0 lead.
Take a couple of cuts, Jim,
off that forehand.
Try to end some points quickly.
See if he can find that timing
on the big forehand.
[Courier] It's been a feature of his game
in these last five or six years.
As Carlos Moy, another world number one,
came on and started coaching Rafa...
he's been more and more aggressive,
and that's been a concerted effort
to allow him to play less defense,
which is more taxing on his body.
That serve misses.
- [chair umpire] 30-15.
- [Courier] It's so doting, Nadal
has his years of climb,
still has the speed on his shots.
The serve has gotten faster
and more aggressive,
the forehand more aggressive.
Once he's in rally,
he's taken the ball earlier
on the baseline in the recent times,
past five, six years,
all with a concerted effort
to, really, still be playing at this age.
He's been unlucky with a lot of injuries,
but it's still phenomenal
that he's still going.
He has a chance at the 15th Roland-Garros
if he can stay healthy
the rest of the season.
[McEnroe] Yeah, over the course
of his legendary career,
Nadal's missed a lot of opportunities
in majors because of injuries.
Certainly more so than his two great
rivals in Federer and
Djokovic were able to
pretty much stave off serious injuries.
Although, the knee injury,
what eventually forced Federer
into retirement.
- [chair umpire] Game, Alcaraz.
- [McEnroe] Alcaraz gets on the board.
When we first saw him
come onto the scene as a teenager,
you could just see, Jim, right away,
that he was built
for the big stages, right?
Nothing bigger
than last year at Wimbledon.
Only played a handful of matches
on grass, in his life,
coming into last year's...
Wimbledon Championships.
And then beats Djokovic
in an epic five-setter.
[crowd cheering]
[Courier] He's built for the big stage,
he's got the complete game
as the guys on the desk
were talking about with Kay.
What he doesn't have yet,
which he's gaining, is experience.
We saw it, even just now.
After that last game,
he went and changed his racket.
We're playing
at about 2,000 feet of altitude.
My guess is,
he went for a tighter string job
to get more control on the ball.
[chair umpire speaking indistinctly]
[Courier] Usually, they change
their strings at the new...
When the new ba*ls come in,
after seven games.
So, after four games, to me,
that's, again,
just Alcaraz learning on the job.
Nadal doesn't have to do that anymore.
He doesn't worry about it anyway.
Nadal never changes his string tension,
no matter what.
- [McEnroe] That's incredible.
- Yeah.
[Courier] Fifty-five pounds, period.
[McEnroe] No matter what.
- Even if it's cold or hot.
- [Courier] On the moon.
- We're going 55 pounds.
- Okay, all right.
[Courier] He's the only guy
I can think of, that does that.
[crowd exclaiming]
[McEnroe] Nadal once again,
the big forehand.
- [chair umpire] 30-15.
- [Courier] For those of you not familiar
with what string tension does,
the tighter the strings are,
the more control you have,
the more speed
you have to put on the swing
to get it to go like Nadal did.
The looser the strings,
the more the ball trampolines off of them.
The easier the power is,
the tougher it is to control.
So Nadal, unlike most of his peers,
he actually recalibrates his swing,
where most players swing the same
and recalibrate their strings
for different conditions.
[chair umpire] Thirty-all.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] Boy, that court gives Nadal
a little bit of help there.
[chair umpire] 40-30.
[McEnroe] Game point for a 4-1 lead.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] Four games to one
for Nadal in this opening set.
Our live coverage here
of The Netflix Slam.
We're in Las Vegas.
First time ever for Nadal
to even be in this city.
Let's go down to Kay, who's got
a couple of special guests alongside.
Kay.
Here I am, there's celebrities,
this is a very star studded event here
in the middle of the Strip,
Michael Douglas
and Catherine Zeta-Jones
are in the building.
I see Lindsey Vonn,
we've got Charlize Theron right behind me.
We've seen you at Wimbledons
and at US Opens.
How is the first-ever
Netflix Slam comparing?
Look, we just started.
First set looks great.
We're so excited to be here,
adds another color and shade
to visit to Las Vegas.
So we're great.
Catherine and I, also,
we have a home in Majorca, Spain.
So particularly, we're rooting for Rafa.
We're a little biased for Rafa.
But I mean, we love the both Spaniards.
- What can I say?
- Happy to see two Spaniards.
Catherine, what is it like
seeing him back here and dominating?
Sitting here, this is like,
for me, to sit...
Of all the tennis matches I've been
around the world for a long time,
I've never had seats like this,
and to see the power and the expertise
and the fine, you know, precise details,
it's quite incredible.
It's amazing.
[Adams] Michael, make your plea.
A lot of talk about Rafa retiring.
You're obviously a big fan.
Want to tell him never to retire, ever?
[Douglas] I mean, he's just so good.
It's just nice to see in a one-off
like that versus a major.
So you go through eight or nine rounds,
and you see how strong he is and how good.
[Adams] We'll see who wins
The Netflix Slam. Guys, back to you.
[McEnroe] Thank you very much.
Thanks, Michael and Catherine.
Certainly two people who know a bit
about the details in their great careers.
Mentioning Majorca, where Rafa is from.
He's got the Rafael Nadal
Tennis Academy there that...
he started a number of years ago,
so that takes up a bit of his time
when he's back home.
[crowd exclaiming]
[McEnroe] Oh, he messed up.
First time we've seen the Alcaraz
drop shot. It was a good one.
[Courier] Rafa gets up to it, gets enough
on this to make it a little awkward.
Still highly makeable
for someone of Carlos' skill set.
He can't believe he missed it.
Neither can Rafa.
Back to 15-all.
[chair umpire] 30-15.
[Courier] Toggling the return position,
Nadal was in title on that one, Patrick.
Nadal's return,
as it's gotten deeper and deeper
over the years,
has actually forced the tours
to change the dimensions
of the courts, that's legal.
- [McEnroe] Yeah.
- They have to be deeper now.
[chair umpire] 40-15.
[Courier] So the courts have gotten bigger
as a result of Nadal expanding
what he uses on the courts
and other players like Medvedev
following his lead.
[McEnroe] That's a big serve.
On the T for Alcaraz with a comfortable
hold at 135 miles per hour.
[chair umpire] Four-two.
[Courier] Getting word that Alcaraz,
when he sent that racket
to be strung, asked for it to be
a kilo tighter from 25
in the mains, 23 in the crosses
to 26 and 24.
So that's a good two pounds
and change higher.
- That should give him some more control.
- [McEnroe] Yeah.
Good call by you and spot on.
Looking for...
a little tighter tension
so he can control that...
major firepower he's got off both wings.
[crowd cheering]
You see Nadal looking to finish points
little more quickly when he can
mixing in some serve and volley.
[chair umpire] First serve.
[Courier] Nadal, when he burst
onto the scenes,
he looked about like this,
physically, right?
I mean, he was beefed up at an early age.
His family
comes from a family of athletes,
his uncle, a famous footballer in Spain.
He's got big genetics as far as muscles,
so he didn't have to put on
a lot of weight.
[crowd cheering]
[Courier] Beautiful. More heat.
He basically came out
with the pirate shorts...
[McEnroe chuckles]
[Courier] Sleeveless shirt.
This guy is 18 years old.
This guy is jacked.
[McEnroe] When Andre came out, with...
[Courier] That's right.
[McEnroe] ...clothing and his monster game.
[Courier] Alcaraz, it took him
until he was about 19 years old,
a couple of years longer
to get strong enough.
But according to Juan Carlos Ferrero,
at the start of nearly 2022 or so,
he basically...
was where they needed him physically
from a weight standpoint,
muscle standpoint.
[crowd exclaiming]
[chair umpire] 30-15.
[Courier] Alcaraz has all the shots.
He's got his body built up big enough.
Fit enough.
That's about the education of Alcaraz,
right? The experience levels.
[McEnroe] I think Andre put it really well
about his ability to sort of recognize
what shots he needs at certain times
just to beat... You got to beat the one guy.
That's a tennis player.
You got to beat that one guy that day.
[chair umpire] 40-15.
[McEnroe] Sometimes I think Alcaraz
can hit himself into trouble.
You know, he's got so much...
to work with.
Interesting, too,
because that Spanish tradition
of tennis players,
particularly on the male side
as we heard a little bit from Ferrero,
you know, be very organized,
very predictable.
In some ways,
Nadal changed that script a bit...
with his just all out
aggression off the forehand,
but known to be very smart,
strategic players.
[Courier] Nadal is an aggressive player,
but he's also a very high
percentage in his tennis, right?
Doesn't really take
a lot of high-risk shots.
Alcaraz is all risk all the time.
He's a high wire act.
That's what makes him so thrilling,
but also, to your point,
makes him a little more volatile,
results-wise.
[McEnroe] An opportunity here for Alcaraz,
now a deuce and a second serve.
Nadal been struggling
a little bit on his second.
Yeah!
Can't leave the ball hanging
in the middle of the court
for this man's forehand.
[chair umpire] Advantage.
Nadal.
[McEnroe] Right inside the line.
[Courier]
Yep, revolutionary shot, lasso forehand.
[chair umpire] Game, Nadal.
[McEnroe] Nadal in a little bit of trouble
in that game but gets out of it.
So now, he's a game away
from capturing this opening set here
in The Netflix Slam.
Mary Joe is going to have
a couple of words with Rafa.
Mary Joe, take it away.
Rafa, a pretty good start.
You're timing well,
you're going for your forehands.
- How does it feel for you so far?
- Much better than expected.
Honestly, no, good, good start.
Enjoying, you know, amazing crowd.
Playing against a great champion
like Carlos and a good colleague.
You know, makes things easy for me...
you know, more than what I expected
in terms of both feeling
and just trying to enjoy the moment.
Let's see if I am able to hold
a little bit of level.
Okay, well, your number one fan
is sitting behind the court, Rafa Jr.
What does it mean to you
playing in front of your son?
He's with your wife, Maria.
Well, it's great.
No, I mean, what came there is,
I think it's a great inspiration.
Doesn't matter
if he doesn't know anything.
- He's behaving pretty well, too.
- For the moment, I think.
I don't know if he will leave soon
because he's not used to
to stay with comfort for a long time,
so he likes to move around.
It's great to have you here.
Best of luck the rest of the way.
- Thank you so much.
- Patrick.
[McEnroe] What a surprise,
he likes to move around.
Wonder where he got that from.
- [Courier] Amazing.
- [McEnroe] This guy never stops moving.
[Courier] He's right.
He's off to a great start
and again, he just, he questions himself.
It's part of his greatness
and how he propels himself
as he has to prove it to himself
every day when he gets out there
and he's doing a great job of it so far.
A game away as you pointed out.
But Alcaraz serving just a one break
deficit at the moment
So not done and dusted yet by any means.
And here come the new ba*ls
so things will quicken up
a little bit for Alcaraz on serve.
[McEnroe] #TheNetflixSlam,
if you want to chime in
on your social media.
Appreciate you all watching
from all over the globe.
Something tells me that their
Netflix subscriptions might be going up
in Spain as it's primetime over there.
We have our Spanish colleagues also...
sending it around the world
in their language.
Oh, yes, that's a nice one, too.
[chair umpire] Fifteen-all.
[Courier] So much firepower on the
forehand wing for both of these guys.
Easy power as well for Alcaraz.
He's not a big athlete
compared to most of his peer group.
In men's tennis these days,
just six-foot tall, which is...
Puts him below average in the men's game.
But boy, the foot speed,
and the live arm aspect is magic.
[chair umpire] 15-30.
- [Courier] Dave Grohl in the house.
- [McEnroe] Yeah.
That's a big delivery right there.
Another one in the mid-130s, at 134.
[Courier] We watched him play
a couple of years ago
as an 18-year-old.
That's when Nadal and Alcaraz
played on a hard court at Indian Wells.
There's no power deficit for the team.
That's when we started thinking,
"Maybe this is going to be the guy
to be the next Nadal
as far as winning a Slam as a team."
And he'd do it later that year
as a 19-year-old at the US Open.
[chair umpire] 40-30.
[Courier] It's a misconception
amongst some people
that power is the problem
for the teenagers.
It's not that, it's actually harnessing it
and knowing when to use it.
[McEnroe] That's a great serve.
That one with a left kick on it.
A couple of aces from the 20-year-old.
And the 37-year-old...
will serve for the opening set now
at the Michelob ULTRA Arena
inside Mandalay Bay.
Absolutely jam-packed.
[chair umpire] Love-15.
[Courier] Nadal's doing everything
to stay in control of these points
and not have to dig
into the corners defensively.
Misses that first forehand slightly.
[McEnroe] He served that well.
[Courier] You understand
why he wanted to keep things short.
The match that he got injured in,
in Australia,
was nearly four hours
in the three-set match
against the Aussie, Jordan Thompson,
and that seemed to overwhelm his body.
[crowd cheering]
[chair umpire] 30-15.
[McEnroe] Alcaraz tryin' to take that
early but overhits it.
[chair umpire] 40-15.
[McEnroe] So now, set point for Nadal.
[McEnroe] Well, that just cut the line
and Rafael Nadal with...
that famous fist pump wins the opening set
in 38 minutes.
Six games to three
and it sure is nice
to have these two legends here
in Las Vegas.
And of course, one legend
showed them around.
The one and only Andre Agassi
taking around Nadal and Alcaraz
on their first-ever visit to Las Vegas.
[lively jazz music playing]
[Alcaraz] When I arrived yesterday,
I was crossing the airport
and we were watching...
Like in the casino.
- Yeah, yeah. The slot machines.
- Yeah.
- Grocery stores, too.
- [Alcaraz] Yeah.
You go buy your eggs
and you gamble a little bit.
Yeah. It was crazy.
[Agassi] I always compare
tennis to a city.
If you believe it,
if you dream it, you can do it.
I call it "can-do" spirit.
Like you on a tennis court.
Yeah. [chuckles]
The Bellagio.
These are the fountains here.
The fountains do this big dance
and music plays.
Life changed for you very quickly, huh,
with the success.
Has this been a tough adjustment?
It was a bit different.
Pressure, let's say, a little bit.
You want you to do good results
in every tournament you go.
That part was... It was more difficult.
Wisdom is something that you wish you had
when you had your body,
you know, it's like...
So, it's important to take anything in
that you can from guys like from Rafa.
I learn a lot from him.
[Nadal] Playing exhibitions
helps to grow our sport.
For kids and for the next generations,
it's kind of an inspiration for them.
To have tennis come here now,
especially with these two guys.
What a gift to Vegas.
[woman] Rafa, Carlos, we love you.
[crowd cheering]
It's nice to have the man with us
right here in the booth.
Andre Agassi, it was fun to see you
taking these guys around.
This has been your home for so many years
and fun to have these two legends.
Have you here, have Andy with us.
- What a great vibe.
- Yeah, it's so much fun.
Just hanging out with them
and getting to actually ask questions.
Things that I'm interested in.
Getting a taste for their spirit
and the way they think and operate.
And you understand
why they're so good at what they do.
They take nothing for granted,
in their training, preparation.
I was worried about his ankle,
but the way he's gone about it...
And it's awesome to see him here.
- These boys came to play.
- [Courier] Big time.
Big time.
- These boys came to play.
- [McEnroe] Settle in.
Loving having you up here
for set number two as...
Alcaraz will kick things off on his serve.
[chair umpire] Players are ready.
[Courier] Boy, how good is it seeing Rafa
being so dialed on his feet
and as well as his forehand early.
That's a good sign for what
he could be in store for
coming up in the rest
of the hardcourt season.
[line umpire] Out.
[McEnroe] Sorry, Jim. We talked to Andre
about the generational shift, right?
You guys have been
part of some of those big changes.
You were there.
Andre, when you played...
The first time you ever played Nadal
was in the final up in Canada,
which is a tournament you owned
for many years
and you played him
on a hardcourt up there.
What did you notice about him right away
the first time you stepped on the court?
[Agassi] That's a great question.
One thing I noticed
is the whole geometry of the tennis court
changed dramatically when you played him.
A tennis court has certain spaces
and you're going,
"The size of the court can't change,"
but when somebody can put a ball
with so much action up and around
and in different places
from different defensive
or offensive positions,
you realize the court's a heck of
a lot bigger than it ever used to be.
You know,
I lived on burying my backhand cross
to a lefty and then taking over the court.
- [Courier] Oof, that's big right there.
- [Agassi] Good one.
You know, I live taking over the court
but what does taking over the court
mean against guys
that can put the ball so up and so down
and raise it so high.
Easy to say. "Just step into the court
and take it earlier."
But you're so committed in position
that you realize
you're in a helpless position.
So, my rules of tennis
didn't apply against him.
[chair umpire] Out.
Out.
[Agassi] There's the altitude
getting to him.
[Courier] He's going a little tighter
on the strings mid-match here
to just try and get
a little more bite on the ball.
[Agassi] I noticed that. That tells you
how well Rafa knows his swing,
the fact that he never has to do it.
Somebody who's really gifted
in a lot of ways to...
to have that sense and nuance
for his own swing,
but then the discipline to believe in it
and keep executing it
over all these years.
[chuckles]
Looks like Rafa's seen that a few times.
[McEnroe] Too easy.
[Agassi] He's even smiling about it.
And he's like, "No...
that ain't open today."
[Courier] One of the things I love
maybe almost most about Alcaraz
is the amount of times you'll see him play
an interesting point,
a great point, even,
and he loses it and then smiles.
[Agassi] Can you do that
and dominate the game of tennis?
- That's the question.
- [Courier] We'll find out.
Give us 15 years and we'll know.
[Agassi] He can do
about four things on a tennis court
better than everybody in the field.
When you think about that,
it's like being the longest driver
hitting the most fairways,
and hitting the least amount of putts.
It's a... big deal.
[chair umpire] Game, Alcaraz
over the hold to open the second set.
What'd you guys take away
from that set number one?
Andre, you talked about
what you were looking for,
and what'd you see
from Rafa that you liked?
[Agassi] What you wanna see
is that he's dominating the point
from the middle.
If his feet move like that,
that means opening up that court
with either one.
And for me, the big one
is his forehand up the line.
I mean, when he...
This is just called being good.
When he starts hitting his forehand,
it's just too much court
to have to defend that in.
So...
If he's feeling that shot,
that's what really makes him unstoppable
'cause it opens up
a high percentage cross loop
that just buries people.
[McEnroe] His loop is more
than a loop, right?
[Agassi] Yeah, it's a high margin.
It's a high margin body blow.
Absolutely, absolutely incredible.
[McEnroe] I think
the biggest threat there was...
Problematic as we look at it again
from Alcaraz's second serve point.
- He's just running...
- [chair umpire] Love-fifteen.
[McEnroe] 38% of those.
That got him into a lot of trouble.
Nadal will be able to take advantage.
Pretty even otherwise.
Andre, I wanted to talk
a bit of technology with you
because along with Patrick,
we were a part of a generation
that played through an era
that was changing.
We played longer than we did,
where the new strings came into the game
that Nadal's been using
and now everyone used.
And you change too late in your career,
what was that change from normal strings
to these copoly strings like?
Well, the biggest difference
with the strings really is
you start to get rewarded
for taking big cuts.
When I came under the tour,
I was one of the few
that'd take rips off both wings
and be able to control that.
Normally, it would be considered
a risk to do that
but with these polyester strings,
I mean, you get more control
the more aggressive you swing.
Look at the cuts they're putting on
and the shape...
[crowd cheering]
Me shifting to get in to a lot more
confidence just to be aggressive,
it had to change in the trajectory
of the serve a little bit.
But the aggression could even get more
and the conviction on every swing
could get more.
Made the court bigger, made offense
a higher percentage plays, so...
It did extend my career a few years,
but again,
my game wasn't growing up on it.
So these guys have swings that
also played to the dynamic of that spin
and that makes it even more exponential.
[Courier] Might be a swing in the match.
- Triple break point.
- [Agassi] Second serve.
[chair umpire] Fifteen...
[Agassi] Well, I tell you what,
I really love Alcaraz's game on the move.
When he's in flight, the dynamics
and his ability to use
that geometry in his favor
with the pace he can inject.
I do get concerned for him
when he's on the static side,
when his feet doesn't
have to move as much,
sometimes he doesn't know where
to direct that energy,
and he gets set a little too early
or not quite the same conviction
on the shots
when he can be in control of the point.
[chair umpire] Game, Alcaraz.
[McEnroe] Double fault
gives Alcaraz a break.
We talked about the modern era of tennis,
particularly on the men's side, guys.
Ivan Lendl was the first guy
really in the open era
that played that huge serve
plus one, right?
The serving of four.
Jim, you took that
and kind of ran with it,
maybe even to another level.
Andre, you could do it,
as you said, off both wings.
Andy Roddick had the big forehand.
What did... How have these two guys
taken the game forward
with that forehand?
[Agassi] I mean, yeah,
Rafa stepped onto the scene
and he just redefined
the dimensions of a tennis court,
as I mentioned.
His ability to spread the court
from any position.
If he's...
You can't play him down to center,
'cause he'll still open up the court.
You can't play him wide
because of his movement,
you give him more angles
to open you up.
So the ability for him to be able
to put that much heaviness on a ball
that's gonna jump above your shoulders
and then be able
to somewhat get on top of that ball
and go through court.
I mean, it's quite honestly,
sometimes it's just, it's unfair.
[Courier] And how his game evolved?
You played him very early
in a match in Canada.
He had a lot of assets,
but he's also improved a lot since then.
[Agassi] No question.
I think you saw that,
for him to win Wimbledon,
he had to sort of adjust his
to serve position,
knowing where to take a bit more risk.
And one of the things
I've loved about Rafa
and what he's brought to the game
is he's one of these guy
that has never felt the need
to play a better match
than he has to win the match.
He's never felt the need to play
a better point than he has to play
to win the point.
You break that down to shot,
he never plays a shot that's unnecessary
if another shot will get it done.
So he was very comfortable
playing inside himself
and then building this game by matching
you and taking it to another gear.
You know, you look at Alcaraz in contrast.
It's like he plays
in fourth gear all the time
and when he gets uncomfortable,
it drops to second gear.
And you go,
"Wow, your third gear is so much stronger
than everybody you play,
you think you could just live there."
But he's also 20 years old and learned...
learned to control that.
Rafa's controlled aggression
is unmatched, in my opinion.
[McEnroe] I tell that story, Andre,
to lots of our kids
at our academy in New York.
About starting out a match,
this is from you.
And sometimes you can
start in second gear, right?
Third gear...
But then when you played Pete Sampras
in the US Open final,
what gear did you have
to start with in that one?
[Agassi] Pete, it didn't matter
how I was playing,
he'd take the racket out of your hand.
And he was so gifted
at not giving your rhythm
that it was hard to even know
what gear you were gonna find yourself in,
but we did.
We did have some battles
that took us both
to the fifth gear occasionally.
[McEnroe] More than occasionally.
[Agassi] Yeah.
[McEnroe] Game points here for Alcaraz
as he's...
started off this second set beautifully.
[Agassi] These ba*ls
that come out of the court.
Those are ones that I feel
like he runs the risk
of either over or underplaying.
He gets that first forehand
and he hits it
to a thick part of the court
and it doesn't make progress
when he can actually dominate with it,
which is a high percentage quality blow.
Jim, you would have just
slapped yourself if you...
- if you didn't...
- [Courier] Pop it to the corner.
No bueno, Andre.
[Agassi] The next forehand,
he gets center of the court,
he goes from second gear
and tries to blow it through the court
and then misses it, you know.
That's the stuff over a period of time...
[McEnroe] Well, he's figured out
his serve anyway, so...
Great to have you up here, Andre,
with us in the group.
But I think they're missing you
down in the studio.
- Let's check in with them.
- [Agassi] Okay.
[Adams] Thank you, Patrick.
Thank you, Jim and Andre.
Here with Prakash and with Andy.
Listen, first set, easy.
Rafa's back. He looks incredible.
"What injury?" is what I'm thinking.
Then second set starts.
I go say hi to Jordan Love.
Carlos has made adjustments.
- What are you saying?
- I blame you
- for Rafa's demise...
- There we go.
- ...in this second set.
- 100%.
But two things that Rafa is doing well,
the first set, he was able to stick
first serve returns.
He's gone to the chip more
than in the second serve.
Maybe Carlos is picking up
some sort of tell on the return,
but those movements where Rafa
is getting around,
that circle C movement
where he's getting around the ball
and getting forehands in the middle,
that looks good, and that's a tell
if someone's been getting in proper reps.
That's something you do
when you have a bunch of rhythm,
a bunch of matches behind 'em.
I'm encouraged by Rafa's footwork
in this outing.
What is so beautiful
is two players of this caliber,
you're starting to see adjustments
in the most minor level.
Carlos is looking a bit more buttoned up.
Unforced errors have come down.
He's shifting to the left,
trying to find more forehands,
dictating play
and executing a little bit more.
All of a sudden,
he might be able to take that second set,
So I want to see the mini adjustment
Rafa's able to do.
Patrick, back to you.
[McEnroe] Thank you so much.
All over it, as always.
[chair umpire] Time.
[McEnroe] Nadal to serve.
Love-three here in this second set.
[Agassi] I tell you one thing I'd have
loved to see with Rafa,
just got my own curiosity,
is if he gave himself the green light
to let his backhand fly.
I believe truly we'd be talking about
one of the greatest backhands ever.
But instead he can do so much
with this forehand.
He can do so much with controlling
the point with percentage.
[crowd gasping]
That he's constantly making the decision,
why do something if you don't have to?
And he's going through
this latter part of his career,
and it might help him a lot
if he just started to unleash the beast
off the backhand side,
because when he amps it up,
there's not a ball he can't hit with it.
I mean, it is an impressive wing.
[Courier] It's a bit of
a confidence tell for him, too.
When he's feeling in full flow,
his backhand is flat,
it's hard, it's deep,
and when he's not, he's tentative,
it lands short, it's vulnerable.
[Agassi] You could argue that
with his forehand side.
I mean, he definitely has a tendency to,
he leaves the ball
a little short and out of both wings
if he's not... If he's not confident.
But to me, let it go for a few games
and give...
That's what he does in the warm-up.
He lets ba*ls fly just to...
Just to make sure,
'cause he knows when he gets crunch time,
he's going to button it up.
But him feeling the energy of being able
to let his swing go is depressing to...
It demoralizes his opponent.
[Courier] The delta between
a Nadal practice, average ball speed
and back in the day, Federer.
- [McEnroe] Yeah.
- [Courier] Federer barely hit the ball.
He tapped it and he'd come on the court
and he'd go nuclear when he needed to.
[Agassi] That's such a punishing shot.
[Courier] I tell people all the time,
and do it while you still have a chance.
Go watch a Nadal practice on an off day,
whether it's in Indian Wells
or Miami or wherever it may be,
you will not believe
how consistently hard he hits the ball,
so much harder than he does in a match,
and I believe it's because
when he gets into a match,
it feels like it's so safe,
even though it's still so aggressive
compared to most players.
[Agassi] Absolutely.
He practiced next to me one time
when we were at the World Championships
and I started hearing g*nshots,
like, going off.
I said, "Who the heck is this?
There was only eight of us here."
And I looked over and it was him.
The first time I really saw him training,
and it just made me
want to go back to the hotel.
[McEnroe] Kind of interesting...
You're talking about, with Nadal
you'd like to see him be more aggressive.
With Alcaraz, you'd like to see him
be maybe just a little
less aggressive at times.
[Agassi] Well, for me,
Nadal, now at this stage,
I'm making assumptions.
Let's hope his body holds up
and he can keep doing it.
He knows how to do it better than
anybody on this planet, really, but...
I mean, and how good are his hands?
I mean, if this guy can do that
as many times as Federer does,
you could argue he might have
the best hands on tour, right?
He only comes in on his terms,
but I can't remember.
He hasn't missed a ball
since, you know, 2009.
But you're right. But at this stage,
things start to...
Maybe you lose half a step,
And you want to be more offensive
than have to get pushed around.
If he has a reason,
he can get more aggressive.
That is beautiful.
[McEnroe] No problem being
aggressive off that wing.
[Agassi] Yeah.
You leave a ball hanging
and loitering in no man's land,
and he will treat it as it deserves.
[McEnroe] He's got his son behind him.
He's talked to him, his family.
- That's nice.
- [Courier] How cute was that.
[Agassi] His goal should be
to play long enough
for his son to remember.
I tell you what, it's a special thing.
- I mean...
- [crowd cheering]
I mean...
I mean, that...
That gives me chills,
you know what I'm saying?
He just lined up and hit it.
And the scary thing is,
he can do that over and over again.
[McEnroe] That's what we call
a grip and a rip.
[Agassi] There we have Alcaraz
with three consecutive forehands,
kind of in a single court.
And not one had the intensity
that took over the point.
And then one was probably a little edgy
on the other extreme, you know, it's...
He's gonna find that. He's 20 years old
and it's going to be beautiful
when he does.
I just hope it's...
I hope it's soon and often.
[Courier] Right about that.
With Alcaraz,
that is what remains for him.
He... He learned a lot in the last
year and a half about his body,
dealing with extreme heat and cramps,
and dealing with long matches
and how to manage his body.
But I think we both agree
he still doesn't know
how to manage his game
and understand strategy, fully yet.
Talent doesn't need any rulebook.
Or guideline.
[McEnroe] Love to watch it, right?
[Courier] But it's also worth
remembering, Federer
wasn't as accomplished
as he is at 20 years.
It took him time to figure out what to do
with his massive amount of skill.
[Agassi] Yeah, Fed was always probing
and trying to figure out ways
to make himself better...
That's what greats do.
You know, when I look at Alcaraz's ability
to bring such upside,
he will struggle with keeping the reins on
and not necessarily
having to do more than he needs to
against a majority of his matches.
[crowd cheering]
But I tell you one thing, GOATs figure out
is what their game is built around
and they rely on that
in their biggest moment.
And I still question if...
Carlos has figured out
what he's going to rely on
to create that consistent,
you know, pressure for his opponent
that gives him the highest percentage
chance of locking something down.
He... He might serve volley,
he might hit first ball drop,
he might slow, blind fly.
And he can do all of it, which is...
This is a great game.
[McEnroe] What a return!
[crowd cheering]
The crowd is eating it up now.
[Courier] 113 mile-an-hour serve
came back just about the same speed,
Alcaraz still stuck out a pull
and almost got it over the net.
Deuce.
[McEnroe] A beautiful feathery touch.
How about some love from me
for the young guy?
[Agassi] If you get a close-up
on Alcaraz in the middle of a match,
you don't know if he's winning or losing.
He lost a point or won the point.
It's like he's having a blast out there.
[Courier] It's like he's on roller skates,
getting into the net fast.
He just floats all the way to it.
[Agassi] And he gave that serve away
with his toss.
Rafa was well on the move
before that thing left his racket.
You gotta punish that.
[McEnroe] It's easy pickings there
for Alcaraz.
He gets himself out of a little bit
of trouble in that game.
And it looks like we could be
headed to a decider in this one.
6-3 to Nadal,
4-1 to Alcaraz in set number two.
Let's go back down to Kay.
She's got some special guests.
Kay?
[Adams] I found some Rams,
courtside. Matthew Stafford,
Super Bowl champion.
You've got Sean McVay.
We'll get the scouting report.
Puka Nacua, I think
Cooper Kupp's here somewhere.
Matthew, I heard you organized this trip.
Why was it important?
And your wife, Kelly, alongside.
I don't know, but I am happy to be here.
This is an awesome trip.
Really cool to watch this...
This kind of tennis up close is sweet.
I hear you're a tennis fan.
I'm new to this.
A lot of people watching
on Netflix also new.
- What can you tell us?
- Kelly got me into it.
She started playing
and I started hitting it with her
and just watching these guys...
Appreciating this talent is pretty cool.
Who are you rooting for out here?
I don't know.
As an old guy, I kind of am
on Rafa's corner, you know?
- Tough, physical.
- Yeah, an old guy.
- We stick together.
- Stick together.
So we're on Team Rafa over here.
I'm gonna make my way. Thank you.
Puka Nacua, where are you?
I saw... Hi, Sean. How you doing?
What's your scouting report on these two?
These are unbelievable athletes.
I said we got to mix this in
for some cross training.
I mean, the hand-eye,
it's awesome to be able
to see them up close.
Veronica, how are you?
We've got so much fun here.
I'm good. How are you?
Having an amazing time?
These seats are insane.
This is so impressive.
Love seeing you guys.
Now, Puka, I saw you at a...
What do you mean?
Okay, he's scared to talk,
but I saw him at a Galaxy
and Miami game with...
Sitting next to Novak Djokovic
and the line of people to see you.
What's it like to be the most
famous guy in the NFL?
[Puka] I'm sitting next to Cooper Kupp,
so I don't believe it.
[Adams] Cooper is here.
We're gonna throw it back to you.
[McEnroe] All right. Thank you, Kay.
These guys know their tennis,
they don't want to get in the way
of what's going on,
so respecting what they're seeing.
Great to have them here.
Just over an hour of play.
If this goes to a deciding set,
there will be a ten-point tiebreak
for the match.
And of course, it's become the norm
in final set tiebreaks in all the majors,
if it gets to six-all...
there's a little ten-point tiebreak.
Had him lined up.
[Courier] Alcaraz now, 0-30.
Andre moving to his right there.
Alcaraz... That's the right ankle,
it's the one that he rolled in Rio.
...tentative on that move
as he was going over there.
[Agassi] You can definitely tell
that he's not wanting to put undue stress.
The court's pretty gritty
out there as well,
and with the boards,
he doesn't wanna get stuck in cots.
So his movement
is a little bit compromised, but...
But I have to say,
you cut down this guy's speed,
it makes him a bit more decisive.
So, you know, sometimes I can work for you
if you know you're not gonna
pay the extra price with the feet.
[Courier] You've consulted
with a few players along the way.
As Alcaraz gets
to a triple break point here,
if you were in his camp
and trying to educate Alcaraz
to be a percentage tennis player,
which is what it sounds like,
would you use video?
Like, how would you go about
the education of Alcaraz?
[Agassi] Yeah, I would definitely
watch matches, and I would...
I would ask him a lot of questions
about what he was thinking.
But then I would give him
a lot of respect.
And I'd give him a lot of respect
for what he's capable of, so...
Not... Not easy...
to figure that out at 20 years old,
but he will.
I mean, he is an expl*sive,
beautiful player
that has every shot in the books,
so let's give him a little time.
[Courier] One thing I would do
is use a recent loss as a lesson.
I would imagine they have.
He lost to Zverev
in the quarterfinals in Australia,
and at the end of the match,
he did not attack Zverev's weakness,
the forehand.
He kept giving him backhands,
which Zverev can hit with his eyes closed,
Didn't force him to play the tough shot.
- [McEnroe] They're simple lessons to...
- [crowd cheering]
[Courier] I'm sure Juan Carlos Ferrero,
who is an amazing coach,
who's developed him,
will get in his head over time,
but it's fun to see him play
with this much abandon.
[Agassi] It's great.
It's easy to love and watch,
and the game's in good hands.
The players are starting to
play him through the center of the court
a little bit more as well,
and he doesn't spread the court.
He runs the risk of being a little
too passive or trying to go through it.
And a guy like me, it's like playing...
You want to work the forehand
as large as you can
'cause there's a chance you miss it.
But you hit your 85%.
[Courier] There was a chance?
- Against you, it's a little different.
- [Agassi] Yeah, with a big one.
[Agassi] 85%, one that buries you
all day, is tough.
[McEnroe] Nadal able to fight off
three consecutive break points.
[chair umpire] Deuce!
[Courier] If there's one
just awareness-wise for Alcaraz,
Nadal's second serve, he can pop it.
But right now is kind of
in the mid-90s to high 90s.
Should he be standing deep to return that?
Should he be on the baseline?
[Agassi] I had the privilege
of playing Nadal twice
and fully came to respect
his second serve.
While it feels like he could be
standing up in the baseline,
it knuckles at you.
If you don't hit that thing square,
you're inside the baseline and he's going
to spread the core from there.
Personally...
[crowd cheering]
[commentators chattering]
[Agassi] I don't mind him
letting that ball settle,
putting a big cut on, but then
really looking take over the point.
You're taking a risk
on the baseline with the second serve.
Even though it seems like
the speed might be, not be high
because that ball wavers around,
and if you don't clean contact,
then Nadal can expose you quick.
[chair umpire] Deuce.
[Agassi] It's like
a knuckleball in baseball.
You know, if you don't hit
that thing dead center,
it's not going to make it
out of the park, right?
And that's what happens.
Return of the second serve
a little off center,
and the ball kind of sits there.
[McEnroe] And when we talk about Andre
on our all our broadcasts
throughout the year,
the greatest returners, your name
obviously always comes up.
I put you as the greatest
offensive returner of all time,
that you could be aggressive.
Who do you put as the greatest returner
you've seen or played against?
[Agassi] Sure, there's a lot of ways
to measure that, and for me,
I had to be an aggressive returner.
When I see somebody like Novak,
he just shuts down
and locks down on the return.
And if all of a sudden, you give him
a broken ankle or a broken leg,
and he had to be aggressive,
he could do it.
So I like the person that can do it all.
[McEnroe] Another break point for Alcaraz.
He's taken a few steps
back here on this return.
More than a few.
[Agassi] This should give him a chance
to get a good cut on the ball
and then look to look
to take over off the next one.
It's a 20-year-old learning in process.
I love it.
[commentators exclaim]
[Courier] Missed that by a mile.
[chair umpire] Deuce.
[Agassi] Another good thing
that 20-year-olds can do
is have good short-term memory loss.
Let's forget that return
and go back to work.
[McEnroe] Third deuce.
[crowd cheering]
[chair umpire] Advantage, Nadal.
[McEnroe] Nadal fights off
four break points
to keep himself alive in this second set.
[Courier] That's rare air in the building.
Not many people have touched
all the bases in tennis.
Andre, you're one of them.
You're not the most accomplished
in your own house because Steffi also...
Nadal and Serena, the only people
to ever win all the majors
as well as Olympic gold.
That's a special group to be a part of.
[Agassi] Yeah, that sure is.
And my wife doing it in the same year,
that couldn't have been easy.
You know, it's funny... I wanted to
ask Rafael the question I wanted to,
which is between those three, I mean,
what, 66 Slams, something like that,
I said, "If one of you didn't exist,
would you guys really be playing
for 30, 35 Slams each?"
and I was taken by his answer.
He really felt like the three
held them all to a...
Having three people so good
held them all accountable
all year long,
even during times of drought,
times when we're struggling,
injury, this that...
So on the one hand, he was sort of saying,
"I may have won more, possibly,
but I wouldn't have been as good,"
and I thought that was
a pretty respectful way to see it all.
[Courier] It's been a magical time
watching this generation with Alcaraz...
Sorry, with Nadal and Federer,
and Novak still going strong.
Andy Murray, who was a big part
of the conversation as well.
Now this new generation
starting to rise with Alcaraz...
This year's Australian Open champion,
Jannik Sinner, another youngster.
We worry about the game
as generations leave
and new generations have to take over.
And then people like Alcaraz
come on to the scene,
- and I think so many of us exhale.
- [McEnroe] Exactly.
[McEnroe] It's gonna be okay.
Ooh. Another one of those ba*ls where...
- his feet got a little static.
- [Agassi] Yeah, it's static.
Where he just runs the risk of not
...delivering the quality
that he can absolutely produce.
[exclaims] Come on.
[Courier] That is not that easy to do.
[McEnroe] But it sure is fun to watch.
[Agassi] You get the feeling like
it makes it fun for him to play.
[McEnroe] Yeah.
Game point for a 5-2 lead.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] Andre, awesome to have you.
They need you back down in the studio.
JC and I, we talk tennis all the time.
We always learn something
when we talk to you.
[Agassi] Oh, I've learned from you guys.
[McEnroe] Let's get down to Mary Joe
who's with Alcaraz now.
MJ.
Thanks, Patrick. Carlos.
Good second set.
You've got the break,
almost a second break.
What adjustments did you make
after Rafa had such a good start?
Well, I started playing more aggressively.
I mean, I started to put the returns in,
trying to read his game
a little bit more... And, yeah,
it's been a good second set for me,
and hopefully keep going on this level.
And your smile, Carlos, is contagious.
Whether you win a point, lose a point,
a big point,
you seem to find a way to enjoy it.
Are you having as much fun
all the time as it looks out there?
Yeah, well, most of the time.
There are a lot of times
that I try to have a smile on the court,
but it doesn't mean
that I'm enjoying so much,
but right now, I'm 100% enjoying this...
this moment.
You don't play in Las Vegas every day,
so I have to enjoy this moment
in front of a beautiful crowd
and obviously,
playing against my idol, you know?
But, yeah.
I try to put my smile on the court,
and that's what you saw,
my best tennis.
We love seeing it.
Good luck closing out the second set.
- Thank you very much. Thanks.
- Patrick.
[McEnroe] All right, Mary Joe.
Thank you so much.
Alcaraz with that 5-2 lead.
Andre making his way back to our studio
alongside Kay, Prakash and Andy Roddick,
the last American man to to win a major
and to be number one,
we've got three of them
in the house here today
with Courier, Agassi and Roddick.
Spain has had
a few number ones themselves.
There's the Nadal family,
[Courier] Yeah.
Wife, son, sister, father, close by,
as Nadal serves
to extend the second set with new ba*ls.
[chair umpire] Love-fifteen.
[Courier] Starting to struggle
with the double faults.
Is Nadal here in the second set?
[McEnroe] Six overall now for the match.
[Courier] It's always easy
when you've been training
at sea level in Palm Springs
and you come to 2,000 feet
of altitude to control the ball.
It doesn't spin as much, does it?
It tends to flatten out.
It's just tougher to get the ball
to dive down the way you want it.
[chair umpire] Fifteen-all.
[Courier] We talk about the differences
in players and similarities,
and everyone would want
to draw the comparisons
with Nadal and Alcaraz.
The Spaniards,
their fighting spirit and all of that.
But the facts are
there are a lot of differences,
and they yuk it up here a little bit.
[McEnroe] He's got it.
[Courier]
And Nadal is another one in the long line
of Spanish players
who figured out a way quickly.
How to play their version
of percentage tennis
as well as anyone.
He is risk-averse,
is Nadal, the way he plays.
He's certainly a dominant force.
But with high percentage.
He is the house. He's the casino.
He basically has long challenged players
to go outside of their comfort zone
to beat him.
Alcaraz on other side of the net,
he's the big whale gambler.
An appropriate metaphor here,
- analogy in Las Vegas.
- [McEnroe] I like all the Vegas stuff.
[Courier] He just wants to take risk
and see what happens.
He wants to light this crowd on fire
with excitement.
Nadal wants to light the the crowd on fire
when he finishes the match,
shakes hands and then celebrates.
That's what the difference is for me.
Alcaraz is sort of a natural
born entertainer.
Nadal is more a natural
born competitor.
- That make any sense?
- [McEnroe] Yeah, it makes a lot of sense.
[Courier] These people know
about entertainment.
[chair umpire] Game, Nadal.
[McEnroe] Nadal able to hold.
Federer had that mix, right?
He was obviously the ultimate competitor,
along with Djokovic,
but he also had that flair.
When he was dominating matches,
he could do a little showtime.
But you wouldn't see the showtime
type of shots from him when it counted.
[Courier] Nope.
And what Andre was talking about,
which I agree with wholeheartedly,
is that eventually Alcaraz is going to get
scar tissue from losing matches
that he maybe could have won
if he played a little smarter brand
of tennis with all of his skills.
So it's worth kind of enjoying him
at this young, vibrant age
where it's all excitement,
all risk, all daredevil,
because I think, eventually,
he's going to stop playing with freedom,
and he's going to be
a better player because of it.
[McEnroe] Yes. Do you want to win more?
Do you want to entertain more?
[Courier] Make sure
you pay attention closely
to these years of Alcaraz
because these are magical moments.
But there's a lot of volatility
and it's going to be fun to watch,
but eventually, I think he'll learn to
tamp down the risk and get more reward.
If he doesn't,
he's still going to be a thrill ride.
He's not going to win as much as he could.
[chair umpire] Love-thirty.
[McEnroe] A miss like that would drive
Andre Agassi crazy.
Midcourt ball.
Don't need to go for too much,
but it's proof that Nadal... A quick point.
It's love-30,
chance for Rafa to get back on serve.
[crowd gasping]
[crowd cheering]
Break point if for Nadal.
[chair umpire] Love-40.
[McEnroe] Saves one.
[chair umpire] Fifteen-forty.
[McEnroe] Twenty-two majors
won by this man.
Two for Alcaraz.
[McEnroe] That was a late call.
Rafa's going to take a look.
He's not sure.
He'll take it. Second serve.
Another late call, but another fault call.
But will Alcaraz challenge it? He will.
[chair umpire] The ball is called out.
[Courier] Nadal's walking to the chair,
seems convinced it's out.
We'll find out together in a moment
on the replay.
[crowd clapping]
[McEnroe] Here it comes. And it is out!
So, a shaky game there from Alcaraz.
And Nadal back on serve. It's 5-4.
One of the most common texts I get
when I'm on the road, Jim...
And you'll learn this as your kids
get a bit older.
"Dad, what's the Netflix password again?"
[Courier] Exactly.
[McEnroe] I'm like,
"Can you please save this?"
[Courier] Let's see if Nadal
can save the set here.
Back in it now at 4-5,
but still needs to hold to get the 5-all.
[McEnroe] Took a lot off that first serve.
Just 99 miles per hour,
and Alcaraz jumped on it.
Oh, yes!
Clean winner.
[Courier] Serve speeds coming down
for Nadal here in this service game.
Just 80 miles an hour
on that second serve.
Alcaraz had a lot of time
to think about what he wanted to do.
Delivers a gem, and he's two points
from the set here at 0-30.
[chair umpire] 15-30.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] Unbelievable!
On their feet in Vegas!
[chair umpire] Thirty-all.
[McEnroe laughs]
Oh, my goodness.
[Courier] That's the fastest serve
he's hit in this game.
What a r*fle shot
to get back to 30-all from Rafa.
[McEnroe] Yes! Set it up beautifully.
Had Nadal on his heels.
Charlize likes it.
And so does Alcaraz,
as that gives him a set point now.
Watch how he sets this up.
Up the line, Nadal on the stretch,
drop 'er!
And there it is!
Alcaraz steps up and wins the second set.
So, the very first Netflix Slam
will be decided
in the ten-point match tiebreak.
Let's send it down to Kay in the studio.
[Adams] Two breaks to end the set.
Andre, you've been all over
this beautiful arena
in your hometown of Vegas.
What adjustments did you see?
[Agassi] You get up
an early break in the first,
and Rafa was letting his game fly.
Then, early in the second,
he got a little conservative,
gave Alcaraz a chance to step up
and do what he does best,
take control of the match.
The serves are a little dodgy.
I don't know if it has to do
with the altitude.
But I'm gonna guess that, in this break,
they're gonna tighten up
the first serve percentage,
get more aggressive
with their first shots.
Andre, Andy, he looked at me
and said, "I hate the serves."
"I hate the serves."
It's something I have in common
with both players,
is they're gonna walk off the court
and hate what they did also.
We have some second serve highlights
we can roll into at some point.
But if you get more looks
at second serves,
Carlos is bleeding Rafa
to that backhand side.
The movement isn't as clean,
getting a lot of chip returns.
And you see Carlos winning.
He can set you up and have that
dink drop shot over the net.
He's gonna be working all the time.
But he puts Rafa in that backhand corner.
Rafa, not quick.
See how he's lunging a bit
to that backhand side?
Carlos is bleeding that movement a bit.
Rafa just left the court.
You hope it's just to go to the restroom
and there's nothing going on.
But he's punishing Rafa
in that backhand side.
[Amritraj] That movement,
it's affecting strategy on Rafa's side.
We're seeing him shorten the points,
go for a few flatter forehands,
serve and volley a bit more,
avoid getting stuck
in that corner over there.
You get a look at the stats over here.
Struggling a bit on that second serve,
Carlos Alcaraz.
He found a way, though he lost.
Again, both players very low
on first serve percentage. 49%. 65%.
Tough in this altitude.
[Adams] Prakash, what are you noticing
with body language here?
Look, they're both very...
Rafa's a bit more serious.
Carlos likes to laugh out there.
But they're both taking this seriously.
The stakes are high for them.
They got a lot coming into Indian Wells
in this high stakes environment.
I like how serious they're taking this.
I think they're using this as a barometer
of where their games are at.
Going to Indian Wells from here
will be a much easier adjustment.
But I definitely think
they're both gonna value, highly,
being on the offensive in this third set.
There's no way Rafa wants to be digging
out of the holes in those corners
the way that Alcaraz has been forcing him.
I'll give you my car if we don't see Rafa
serve and volleying,
playing it out wide and coming in,
trying to shorten the points.
Opening up the shoulders more
on the backhand side.
He won't wanna get into rallies. He knows...
If we can see he's bleeding him
to the backhand side,
that's not news to Rafa.
He's gonna open up the shoulders,
try to get the first strike in early
in these points.
[Amritraj] When you're in an event
like this, it's the decider,
it's the first to ten out there.
You wanna win or lose on your own terms.
So I think we'll see that from both.
This has been such a blast, honestly.
I'm the luckiest woman.
Andy getting pissed off at serves,
I'm getting pissed off at backhands.
How can you miss that?
Listen, I promise.
I'm never offended by truths,
so that's where we're at.
But their teams will want them...
There's gonna be practice before they play
in Indian Wells, for both.
[Adams] We'll send it to Patrick.
[McEnroe] All right. Thank you.
Alcaraz will serve the opening point,
and then, they'll each serve
two points thereafter.
First player to ten.
You must win by at least two.
First point goes to Alcaraz.
[Courier] These players both have
patterns in tiebreakers.
For Alcaraz, this is when
the drop shot will come out.
This is when he wants to wrestle control
early in the points.
He's not as patient
in the tiebreakers, traditionally,
as he is through the rest of the match.
For Nadal, this is where
he ups his aggression.
Nadal has talked openly about,
when he gets to tiebreakers,
he wants to be in control of what happens.
That will be difficult for him to do
against Alcaraz.
This will be first-strike tennis,
most likely.
[McEnroe] He got a serve out from Nadal.
That opens the court.
And he takes care
of the midcourt forehand here.
One apiece.
[Courier] All that runs counter
to what Novak Djokovic does in tiebreaks,
where he relies on his defense
and consistency,
and tries to extract errors
from his opponents.
These guys try and win it.
Djokovic tries to let his opponents
beat themselves.
Very different mindsets.
[McEnroe] Alcaraz, again,
taking the return early.
He's got the first mini-break
of this match tiebreak.
Two-one.
Nadal is challenging the call.
Doesn't seem particularly confident.
He's walked to the other side.
[Courier] Both are prepared for this
to go the wrong way.
Alcaraz is waiting to hit a second serve
into the ad court.
Nadal, waiting to return in the deuce.
[chair umpire] Ladies and gentlemen,
due to a technical difficulty,
they are not able to show the review.
However, the review official
has told me the serve was out.
- Second serve.
- [McEnroe] Okay.
That's trust.
Not able to show it on the screen,
but, apparently, in the video room,
they could see it was out.
So, second serve.
[line umpire] Out!
[chair umpire] Two-all.
No!
[McEnroe] Three-two to Alcaraz.
They'll switch ends after each six points.
So, after this point,
they'll switch sides.
Again, first player to ten,
with at least a margin of two.
If not, it could go on to 11-9, 12-10...
You get the idea.
[line umpire] Fault!
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] Nadal with that topspin.
It looked for a second
like it was going out,
but it dipped quickly.
And it's three apiece.
Exactly what you said, Jim,
was gonna happen,
is you can see Rafa putting a lot more
into each forehand.
[Courier] Into the forehand
and second serve.
That second serve, 102 miles an hour.
Remember, he had an 80 mile an hour
second serve just a couple of games ago.
Both these guys
trying to finish strong here,
and it is knotted at three apiece.
[McEnroe] The thing about Nadal,
when he goes bigger,
and it's not just with the pace,
it can be with the spin.
He's trying to get a bit more RPMs on that
to get the ball to jump,
to move even more.
Exactly what we were all hoping
and expecting to see...
in this first-ever Netflix Slam,
dead even in the tiebreak.
[line umpire] Out!
[chair umpire] Four-three, Nadal.
[crowd exclaims, cheers]
[chair umpire] Four-all.
[Courier] Good acceleration on the feet
from Nadal just to extend this point,
and he just has to guess.
He guesses cross.
And quickly down the line.
And back to level.
Four apiece for Alcaraz.
[crowd gasps, cheers]
[McEnroe] That was a great display
of hands there from Alcaraz,
'cause he could see Nadal moving forward,
expecting the short drop volley.
And he just poked it deep
and caught Rafa moving forward.
[line umpire] Out!
Out.
[McEnroe] Smart serve from Rafael,
right into the body.
- Saw Alcaraz inching forward.
- [chair umpire] Five-all.
[Courier] You gotta be ready
for a forehand.
Nadal is not going to give him
the wide angle to beat him
with a two-handed cross
like he did earlier tonight.
He's going to go forehand there
almost every time.
And that's exactly why,
pressure on Alcaraz.
[line umpire] Out.
[crowd cheering]
[chair umpire] Mr. Nadal...
[McEnroe] Nadal will challenge it.
Gasol. David Ferrer,
former top player from Spain.
Francis Tiafoe,
one of the top-ranked American men.
They're waiting, will we get
the video challenge or will it be...
just audio? Sounds like it probably...
Oh, here we go.
We got it.
And it is... good.
By a sliver.
[chair umpire] Replay recorded. Five-all.
[McEnroe] First serve
for Rafa at five-all.
[Courier] If Alcaraz crowds
the baseline like he is,
it's likely to end up
on his backhand, the serve.
Because Nadal is not going to worry
about the backhand angle
if he goes up the middle.
[line umpire] Out!
[Courier] He gets a freebie,
missed the return.
But again, more speed on that serve.
99 miles an hour from Nadal.
[McEnroe] He's picked it up...
[chair umpire] Six-five, Nadal.
[McEnroe] ...on that serve,
in this tiebreak.
It's all on the line now.
Alcaraz will serve these next two points.
It's five-six.
Change of ends coming again
after this point.
[line umpire] Out.
[Courier] A very late call from
the lines person.
And we'll get a replay on that.
[McEnroe] Rafa not...
so sure about it.
And here it comes.
And it was long.
- [chair umpire] Stands. Second serve.
- [McEnroe] Second serve.
No, he missed it.
They will switch ends with Nadal
now in the lead at 7 points to 5.
One hour and 44 minutes.
First set going to the legend.
Six games to three. Second set...
to the upstart in Alcaraz. Six-four.
A couple of breaks late in that set.
[Courier] It's been
a great break for all of us
to get a chance to see
these two amazing athletes.
They both had physical challenges.
Nadal, injured in January,
able to make it here and look good.
And Alcaraz, just a couple of weeks ago,
down in Rio, rolled his ankle
on a wet clay court.
Still here, still fighting
and still in it.
Down 5-7 in the match tiebreak.
[line umpire] Out.
[McEnroe] That's a great second serve
right in the corner.
And he needed that.
[chair umpire] Seven-six, Nadal.
[line umpire] Out.
[line umpire] Alcaraz going deep,
which opens up
the wide opportunity on the second
if Nadal wants it.
[McEnroe] And he comes in behind Nadal.
Look at the response.
What a return!
[Courier] It's Rafael's fault.
He showed everyone
that they could stand that deep
to return serves.
[McEnroe] What a good point.
[Courier] What an angle. That was fierce.
Just inside the line.
Seven points-all.
[crowd gasping, cheering]
[McEnroe] Complete mishit there.
So it's eight-seven.
[Courier] That ball stayed in the rafters.
It still hasn't come down.
[chair umpire] Eight-seven, Alcaraz.
[Courier] Catches the top of the frame
as he's going from low to high
and, boom, straight up and out.
Well now.
[Courier] Chance for Alcaraz
to close it out on his serve at 8-7.
That's easy pickings there
as he sets it up to perfection.
And it's now a match point.
[chair umpire] Nine-seven, Alcaraz.
- [McEnroe] He mishit it.
- [crowd cheering]
Maybe a little too cautious
on that one, Jim?
[Courier] Against his instincts.
Played it pretty safe.
Had an opportunity on a mishit for him
from Nadal to go nuclear
and opted to stay and wait.
And this match will continue on.
Still match point.
[McEnroe] This one on Nadal's serve.
Eight-nine.
[crowd cheering]
Chants of "Rafa! Rafa!"
[crowd cheering]
Absolutely unreal.
[Courier] All or nothing.
[McEnroe] And it's everything.
[Courier] Nadal flattens it out
over the high part of the net,
and it's a m*ssile that hits its target.
And this match will continue.
Can you believe it? 'Cause Tiafoe can't.
Oh, my goodness.
[Courier] That is some vintage stuff
right there.
He knew that was the only shot
he had to win the point.
And he pulled it off.
And the crowd, are loving it.
Nine points-all. A margin of two necessary
to win the match tiebreak.
[line umpire] Out.
Mr. Nadal challenges the call.
Left service line.
Ball was called in fault.
[McEnroe] That's long. Second serve.
It's good.
Right inside the line.
[chair umpire] Ten-nine, Alcaraz.
[McEnroe] Match point number three
for Alcaraz.
[line umpire] Out.
[crowd cheering]
[chair umpire] Ten-all.
[Courier] Great reflex here from Nadal
with a drop shot.
Alcaraz has as good a feel
as anyone in men's tennis.
But he couldn't find it
when he needed to finish it.
Finds that one, though.
[chair umpire] Eleven-ten, Alcaraz.
[Courier] 137 mile an hour. Ace.
[McEnroe] That's the biggest of the match.
And now it's match point
number four for Alcaraz.
Will this be the one?
He's looking a heck of a lot calmer than
the 10,000 fans here who are loving it.
[line umpire] Out.
[McEnroe] Was going for the serve
and volley there.
[Courier] Alcaraz still deciding where
he's going to stand. Now stays in close
Missed it.
I think Alcaraz is having too much fun.
He doesn't want this to end.
[McEnroe] Yeah. So are we.
- [chair umpire] Eleven-all.
- [McEnroe] Eleven apiece.
We're here for as long as it takes.
Another beauty of Netflix, right?
We just go and go.
No time limits here.
[line umpire] Out.
[McEnroe] Both players missed hitting
some forehands...
...late in this match,
trying to do a bit more
when they get a look at that.
[chair umpire] ...Alcaraz.
[McEnroe] Fifth match point,
third time on his serve.
He'll try to finish it.
[chair umpire speaks indistinctly]
[McEnroe] Nadal got it good.
Look at that. They'll switch ends again.
At 12 points apiece.
Alcaraz has had five match points.
Nadal has yet
to have been able to get one.
[Courier] That plays on your head,
if you're Alcaraz.
You've had all these chances. Can't find
the center of the strings on that one.
Again, the smile comes out but I'm sure
there's frustration building underneath.
Feels like Nadal's ahead,
12-12 at this point.
[McEnroe] Nadal had to...
pretty much guess.
- Alcaraz took his time, saw him move, and...
- [chair umpire] Thirteen-twelve.
- Alcaraz.
- ...easily hit that forehand
into the open court.
[Courier] Nadal was looking for
the wide second serve
and was surprised
when it went to his forehand.
Didn't make clean contact on it.
So he's in save mode again.
Match point number six on the line.
[crowd cheering]
[McEnroe] Carlos Alcaraz...
shuts the door on Rafael Nadal.
And what a first-ever Netflix Slam it was.
Goes to the 20-year-old.
But Rafael Nadal, to your point,
just a couple of minutes ago,
Jim, has to be pretty darn happy...
with how he held up and how he looked.
But it's this man...
who gets the win.
[Courier] Understandably, this man
gets the bigger applause.
We don't know how much longer we'll get
to revel in his greatness on court.
But it's been great to have him
here in Las Vegas for the first time.
The ultimate tennis warrior gives us
the ultimate match tiebreak.
That was fantastic to see
these guys doing battle.
The fans here in the building will never
forget a chance to see these two Spaniards
just go toe-to-toe as they
try to keep moving forward.
Alcaraz with so much of his career
ahead of him, really just getting started.
And Nadal hoping for one more push
at Roland-Garros. That's his real dream.
And matches like this are necessary
for him, aren't they, Patrick,
for him to believe that his body
can hold up for what's to come.
[McEnroe] The good news
for Nadal was that he...
It looks like he found
a little extra energy in that tiebreak,
fought off those five match points.
And, again, you'd think will feel
pretty good about how he held up.
Both players will get set
for the trophy presentation.
Both make a quick trip.
As you see, Rafa's son and his wife.
[Courier] With a little Babolat racket
ready to go.
[Courier] Will make the trip over
to the California desert for...
the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
Qualifying underway there today.
The main draw starting
middle of next week.
[Courier] Nadal's already...
They've notified the public.
He'll play on Thursday night
in the night session,
in his opening round match.
So he knows when he'll start.
Alcaraz, as a seeded player,
will play either on Friday or Saturday,
depending on
which half of the draw he's in.
Both of them will go
and you'd think feel a bit
better about themselves and their bodies.
Having made it through this two-hour
tussle with each other here in Las Vegas.
[McEnroe] Of course,
we'll see Novak Djokovic back...
playing on American soil.
We'll see Jannik Sinner,
this year's Australian Open champ.
Daniil Medvedev...
- ...and everybody.
- [Courier] All the women. All the men.
And it'd be awesome... Is it
somewhat apropos that The Netflix Slam
- ended on a net court?
- [McEnroe] I guess it is. Absolutely.
[Courier] Nadal's forehand ticks the tape.
And drifts long in the high desert air
here in Las Vegas
and that allows Alcaraz to finally
get a match point.
That was a challenge for him.
But what a thrill. He's talked openly
about how much he admires
and is inspired by Nadal.
A chance to be in the same venue with him
and to compete against him is...
something he doesn't take for granted.
[McEnroe] We don't take these moments
for granted either,
even in this exhibition atmosphere.
It lived up to...
what we hoped and expected it to be
which was an extremely competitive match.
And a high level
on display from both players.
Signing a few autographs courtside.
Mary Joe Fernndez
has made her way down to the court.
And we are just a couple of moments away
from the trophy presentation.
[Courier] Alcaraz has already perfected
the short and sweet autograph.
[McEnroe] Yep.
We'll hear from both players,
by the way, in the presentation.
Andre Agassi will be there as well.
What a treat
to have him with us alongside...
Andy Roddick, Prakash Amritraj,
Kay holding the fort down in the studio.
You know, pleasure to be part
of this production here at Netflix.
Certainly delivered and then some.
So we are all set now
for the presentation.
Let's send it down to Mary Joe Fernndez.
[Fernndez] Thanks, Patrick.
Ladies and gentlemen,
what an incredible match
here at Michelob ULTRA Arena
at the Mandalay Bay
from these two great superstars.
How about another round of applause
for Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz.
[crowd cheering]
All right, let's hear a few words
from 22-time major champion,
Rafael Nadal. Rafa?
[crowd cheering]
Are you tired?
It took you so long to get up here?
No.
So sorry, I was talking with Carlos.
Rafa, that was so exciting.
It was nice to see you
for the first time in Las Vegas.
What was the experience like
for you to play in the first Netflix Slam?
It was great.
I was supposed to be here last year.
Unfortunately, due to...
some issues, I was not able to be here
but I enjoyed a lot.
Congratulations to Carlos
for a great match.
And...
in a personal level, yeah.
Great. I was not able
to play a lot for the last two years.
So, play here with Carlos in front of...
in front of an amazing crowd...
in Las Vegas means a lot to me.
So, super happy,
There was such good energy,
such a great atmosphere.
Playing with Carlos, someone who has said
so many times you've been his idol.
What goes through your mind
when you're playing against him
and everything
that he's accomplished at 20 years of age?
Well, first of all, it's a big challenge.
Yeah, I mean,
it's a completely different generation.
I think, in Spain...
We should be very, very happy
about having somebody like Carlos coming.
You know, he's an amazing player.
With only 20-years-old, already...
won two Slams and...
couple of
very important tournaments so, yeah.
Good thing is, as a...
As a player, I will not face many times.
But as a fan, I will keep enjoying him
for such a long time, hopefully.
Absolutely.
Finally.
This is being watched all over the world.
How about a few words in Spanish
for all your followers back home in Spain
and all over the rest of the world.
[Nadal in Spanish]
I can only thank all the followers...
...Spanish and Latino followers
all around the world.
Throughout...
Throughout my career I've always felt
incredibly loved and supported
by the Latino fans.
That so many people around the world
could watch this match,
especially in the Latino community,
a very important...
...and large community...
...it means a lot to us.
My love goes out to everyone.
- [in English] Thank you. Well done.
- [Nadal] Thank you so much.
Okay. Now, for the presentation
of the winner's trophy.
Vegas' own Andre Agassi is with us.
Netflix Co-CEO...
Netflix Co-CEO, Greg Peters.
And the CEO and president of MGM Resorts,
Bill Hornbuckle.
Bill...
Present the trophy.
Thank you.
How fantastic was that? How about one more
great round of applause for these guys?
So I want to thank
all of you for coming. Our fans...
I particularly want to thank Greg Peters
and Netflix for helping us put this on.
Las Vegas has been on a roll.
We had a little car race.
We had a little football game.
We thought we'd bring some tennis
so I hope you enjoyed that.
We're gonna do it again.
So if I can... Carlo?
On behalf of MGM Resorts,
congratulations to the first
and, hopefully, annual...
Congratulations to you.
Thank you. The Lion's Cup.
Carlos, congratulations.
That was so exciting.
You had to have a lot of match points
before you finally got the victory.
How was it
playing in Vegas for the very first time
in your first Netflix Slam?
Well, it's incredible
playing here in Las Vegas.
Honestly, as Rafa said, we were
supposed to play last year but, yeah...
we couldn't.
Yeah, this year, I was really excited.
It was really exciting to
come here and play here in Las Vegas,
a place that I really wanted to come.
And I enjoyed this atmosphere
that has been incredible.
And, obviously,
playing against Rafa. It was...
really, really special for me.
And doing it here in front of
all of you has been amazing. Thank you.
You've talked so much about admiring Rafa.
He's been your idol
and that you'd like to learn from him.
What have you learned the most?
Not just today in the match
but throughout your career from Rafa?
Well, I think that fighting spirit that...
he never give up any ball, he run the...
You know, around the...
Every corner of the court
and hitting amazing serves.
As you said,
I had a few match points before I...
I got it
and he make an unbelievable serve.
And he never give up so I think that's...
That I try to keep to my game.
And that mentality that he has.
You know, finding solutions
when things are not going well every time.
So I learned from him that...
Yeah, he...
I try to keep it and I think
everybody in life try to keep it as well.
Well, you're following in great footsteps.
Lastly, as well.
We heard Rafa speak in Spanish about
how important the Hispanic community is.
Everybody's watching from all over the
world. Back in Spain, it was primetime.
Can you share a few words also in Spanish?
[in Spanish] It's been a pleasure
to play here.
As we've heard, a lot of Spanish
and Latino people came to support...
...the game.
I feel so loved.
I haven't had the chance
to come to South America a lot...
...but the times I have been incredible,
I've felt...
...at home. I want to thank all the love
we've received where we're headed,
...and from home, and of course...
...to Spain, to everyone who watched
from home. Thank you everyone.
[in English] So much support
from the Hispanic community.
Congratulations.
Let's see you raise the trophy.
The first Netflix Slam winner,
Carlos Alcaraz.
[McEnroe] All right, everyone,
what a first Netflix Slam it was.
JC, great to share the booth with you.
I've been waiting a long time to do that.
So awesome to see you and be with you.
What a great experience, our first time
for a match like this in Vegas.
[Courier] It's amazing
to have these two athletes.
And then have Andre and Andy Roddick
and Prakash and Kay.
We had a great team that enjoyed it.
Hope you enjoyed Netflix's Broadcast here.
This has been a lot of fun
to be involved in.
Thrilled to hear that the MGM plans
to do more of these on the go forward.
What a great time here in Las Vegas.
And the players
seem to be having the most fun of all.
[McEnroe] They enjoyed it, as did we.
Thanks to MGM
and, of course, to Netflix
for putting this all together.
Suffice to say, this was a...
victory for tennis today.
To see these two great players go at it
here in Las Vegas.
Thank you for joining us here
live on Netflix.
Hopefully, we'll see you again soon.
All the best from Las Vegas.
[upbeat electronic music playing]
[announcer] Ladies and gentlemen,
thank you so much for attending.
Please drive safely on your way home.
And can't wait to top it again, next year.
Thank you.
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Netflix Slam, The (2024)
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