Last year this time, Carlos Alcaraz was a nobody in the tennis world. He had not cracked the top 100, and world number one Novak Djokovic and perennial champions Rafael Nadal were still the dominant forces. Today, the Spanish teenager is one of the biggest names in the sport after a stunning record-breaking streak.

After producing back-to-back sensational victories over 21-time Grand Slam winner Nadal and Djokovic on his way to the Madrid Open final, the 19-year-old, who was the first player to beat the two tennis giants at the same event on clay, showcased his incredible technical prowess again on Sunday night by swatting aside defending champion Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-1 in a one-sided affair.

The irrepressible Alcaraz, who became the youngest male player ever to clinch Miami Open earlier this year, is now the youngest man ever to claim the Madrid trophy. He was also the second-youngest to win two Masters 1000 trophies after his compatriot Nadal won in Monte Carlo and Rome in 2005. 

Alcaraz had lost his two previous meetings to world number three Zverev in straight sets, but the wunderkind came into the Madrid final with sky-high confidence and indisputably brilliant form. And after a comprehensive defeat in barely an hour, 25-year-old Zverev was full of praise for his young rival.

"I want to congratulate Carlitos. Right now, you are the best player in the world," he told Alcaraz during the on-court interview. "It is great for tennis that we have such a new superstar that is going to win so many Grand Slams, that is going to be world number one, and I think is going to win this tournament many more times."

With this victory, Alcaraz became the first player since 1990 to beat three top five players on the way to a title. He is also the first man to beat three top four players at the same event since David Nalbandian beat Nadal, Djokovic and Roger Federer in Madrid in 2007.

"It feels great to be able to beat these players," Alcaraz said at the press conference. "To beat two of the best players in history and then Zverev, the world number three. He is a great player. I would say this is the best week of my life."

Reflecting on the last 12 incredible months, he said, "Last year, I was going through these experiences for the first time, playing against the best players, playing in the Masters 1000, and I learned a lot. Now, it's different. I go onto the court with the confidence that I can win at any moment."

"I am 19 years old, which I think is the key to be able to play long and tough matches in a row. I am feeling great physically," he said. "Watching Rafa lift this [Madrid] trophy gave me a lot of power to work hard for this moment."

"It is the first tournament I watched, so lifting the trophy is so emotional," he said.

Alcaraz now has more ATP titles (four) and match wins (28) than anyone else on the men's tour this year and is set to rise to sixth in the world before the French Open, which starts on May 16.

"I really want to go to Paris to win a Grand Slam, to show my level in a Grand Slam," Alcaraz said. "People are going to take me as a favorite, but I take that as motivation."