23 & Me: Daria Saville trolls Tsitsipas after Greek “veteran” sees younger self in Carlos Alcaraz 

As the tennis world suffered a collective #feeloldyet moment watching 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz capture the Mutua Madrid Open title, Daria Saville was quick to point out that not all of us have quite lost our youth just yet.

The Lucille Ball of Tennis Twitter—now there’s an old reference!—honed in on an inimitably extended musing from Monte Carlo champ Stefanos Tsitsipas ahead of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. Asked about Alcaraz’s infusion of new energy on tour, the world No. 5 admitted he sees a bit of himself in the Spanish teen.

“It kind of reminds me of my early days when I was introduced to the ATP Tour,” he said in his pre-tournament press conference. “I didn't really know what to expect along the way. I was just playing carelessly, completely free-spirited. It's a nice thing to see.”

When the quote made it to social media, Saville noted Tsitsipas, at 23, is only four years older than Alcaraz—and only a year removed from his own major breakthrough when he made his first Grand Slam final in Paris.

Saville’s "barbarous" joke led to discourse over age in tennis because of course it did, but it’s a conversation that ultimately tips in the Aussie’s favor. After all, at 28, she herself would have been considered close to retirement age a decade ago, but given the growing number of players competing into their late 30s, that is definitely no longer the case.

Taking the tweet as a slight against their fave, a Tsitsipas fan asked Saville what she was doing at 23. Saville responded with one of her viral GIFs, showing her help the ball kids dry a washed-out court.

Indeed, Saville isn’t shying away from the growing up she’s done since reaching the Rome semifinals in 2015. Just this week, she shared TikToks from her wedding to fellow player Luke Saville—including video of their adorable dachshund Tofu serving as ring bearer.

Whether you’re Team Tsitsipas or Saville on this one, I think it’s fair to say the 2003-born Alcaraz has made us all feel older than usual…at least until the next young star comes around.