Issue link: http://itf.uberflip.com/i/1227840
34 Spring 2020 ITF World He may be known as the Roger Federer of beach tennis – and there is no rush to ditch such an association – but Italy's Alessandro Calbucci believes he has greater similarities with another of the sport's greats. Calbucci is steeped in beach tennis folklore and, despite celebrating his 40th birthday in December, the four-time world champion's ability to chalk up titles and accolades shows no sign of slowing. For the fourth time in his career, Calbucci was the year-end No. 1 following an impressive 2019 which, among other successes, saw him triumph at the ITF Beach Tennis World Championships in Terracina alongside Michele Cappelletti. Calbucci says there is potential for his previously successful partnership with fellow Italian Marco Garavini to be reprised during 2020, and, like Federer, the opportunity to lift silverware will no doubt beckon once more. Of those comparisons with 20-time Grand Slam champion Federer, Calbucci told ITFWorld: "People refer to me as the Roger Federer of beach tennis because of my style, results, the glamour and so on. "I like this because I am a Federer fan 100 per cent and I am an ambassador and icon of the sport. Maybe, though, technically speaking, my game is more like Novak Djokovic's. "It is more like Djoko's given my consistency and I have a great return. Also, I would score Beach tennis star Alessandro Calbucci discusses similarities with the tennis elite, former AC Milan strikers and being the world's best at the age of 40 "I just want to play and win the best tournaments while helping to establish beach tennis in new places." BEACH TENNIS