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Carlos Alcaraz says he still has room for improvement in his game and other aspects as he gears up to begin his 2023 season at next week's Argentina Open.
The Spaniard climbed to the top of the ATP rankings in September 2022 after winning his first major title at the US Open and stayed there for 20 weeks before Novak Djokovic took over after winning the Australian Open, which Alcaraz missed with injury.
"I achieved my dream, my goal, very quickly. Practically in just a year. I dealt with it as naturally as possible," 19-year-old Alcaraz, who is now world No 2, said.
"After becoming No 1 I had to set new goals, new things for the long term, to continue to enjoy myself, continue to improve because I'm very young and I have a lot of things to improve.
"I think I can improve everything in terms of my game, fitness and mentality. Little by little, my team will take those small steps to get even better."
Alcaraz said he is motivated by Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer and Djokovic, who made huge improvements over time after a great start in their early years.
"Achieving my dream very quickly caught me by surprise, so to speak. Now I'm used to it, I have a goal, I know where I want to get to, what I want to be, and that is the most important thing," he said.