Alcaraz started working with former world number one Ferrero when he was 15, training with the 2001 French Open champion at his academy about an hour’s drive from Alcaraz’s home.
Ferrero was persuaded by Alcaraz’s agent Albert Molina, who spotted the youngster aged 11 and convinced international sports agency IMG to manage him a year later, to commit to what he saw as a long-term project.
Ferrero, 45, nurtured Alcaraz’s talent and took him into the professional ranks before guiding him to all six of his Grand Slam titles.
Alcaraz claimed his first major at the 2022 US Open, won Wimbledon in 2023, added the French Open and another Wimbledon title in 2024, before again winning the French Open and US Open this year.
Alcaraz is aiming to become the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam at the season-opening Australian Open next month.
“I wish I could have continued,” Ferrero said.
“I am convinced that good memories and good people always find a way to cross paths again.”