Alcaraz: ‘I’m better, but I’m still a little scared to hit the ball’

The Spaniard tells Marca about his sensations on the eve of Roland Garros: “I’m better, the training went better than in Madrid, but I’m still a little scared to hit the ball. Every time I do it at 100% I get a buzz in the lead. I don’t consider myself the favorite, but I think I have a chance to win.”

THE GUIDE TO ROLAND GARROS

There is still a hint of fear for Carlos to chase away Alcaraz ahead of Roland Garros. Upon returning from the right forearm injury that forced him to miss the Italian internationals, the Spaniard confessed that he still had some fears about hitting the ball: “I’m much better than in Madrid, training went quite well – he explained to the Spanish newspaper Marca – However I’m still a little scared to hit the ball. Every time I do it at 100% I feel a buzz in my head. I still wear the compression bandage, I use it as a precaution and I know it helps me. Playing with the blindfold doesn’t cause me mental stress.” Alcaraz recalled the stages of approach to Paris, explaining the work done for the forehand shots (real problem with the forearm injury): “I worked day after day and together with my team we followed the guidelines. I started by hitting 80 forehands, but half that with a weak serve. Then I got to 120 with greater intensity. We preferred to proceed little by little and I think it was positive.”

“I don’t consider myself favored, but…”

Thanks to the puzzle regarding his physical conditions, Alcaraz does not consider himself the absolute favorite for Roland Garros, but he is aware that he can play a leading role: “I’m not as prepared as in previous years or as I would have liked, but I consider myself a player who adapts very well and gets into the rhythm quickly – he continued – I don’t consider myself the favorite for Roland Garros, far from it, but I still think I have a chance of winning it. We’ll see how I feel in the next few days. There are many players lined up to win: My name is on that list, but maybe not among the first.”

“Semifinal with Djokovic among the worst moments”

Finally, the Murcian recalled the last match played in Paris: June 9, 2023, semi-final lost with Djokovicwithout playing the last two sets due to cramps. “It was among the worst moments of my career – he recalled – I was playing at a high level, I thought I could win that match and the tournament. It was a magnificent match against Djokovic and the fact that it ended like this in the last two sets made me very angry.”