Ferrero – a former French Open champion – had coached Alcaraz for seven years before their split, which came just two months after the 22-year-old defeated Sinner in the US Open final. Not only did Alcaraz capture his second title at Flushing Meadows but he also regained his world No. 1 ranking from the Italian.

Speaking on El Larguero, he said: “After being with Carlos, it’s hard to get excited about another player and achieve things. Discussing his potential return to tennis, he added: “It’s my life, I’m not going to give it up. I don’t know when I’ll be back, but I’ll most likely return.”

Upon his future return, he was asked whether he would consider coaching Alcaraz’s greatest rival in Sinner, to which Ferrero refused to rule it out. He explained: “Right now, I don’t know. He’s a great player, one of the two best in the world. I wouldn’t say no. If I were given the opportunity, I would have to think about it.”

Alcaraz and Sinner both secured safe passage into the Australian Open semi-finals, with the former doing so in a sublime performance against Alex de Minaur. Ferrero admitted it’s been difficult watching his former pupil in action as he said: “It’s difficult when you see Carlos compete and see your whole team there on the sideline – it’s not easy to describe the feeling. I’m happy with how he is playing and that he has not lost a single set in Melbourne.”

Alcaraz’s dominant victory over the Aussie means he remains on course to become the youngest man to claim the career Grand Slam. He admitted his management of patience has improved and has resulted in qualifying for the semi-finals of the Australian Open for the first time in his career.

“This my first official tournament of the year,” the Spaniard said. “For me sometimes, I’m not that patient sometimes. In the first match, I just really want to play at my best level. This is almost impossible. You have to get the rhythm of the competition again. I left the court in the first round happy with my level, how I just felt on the court.

“My team told me, be patient. Your level, the level you want to play, is going to come, for sure. You got to just keep trying, keep pushing yourself, and you will get where you want to be. I think it’s been a great work so far of patience, of trying, of pushing yourself and just happy to see where my level is right now.”