Roland-Garros 2023 – Men’s singles – Carlos Alcaraz, ambition and the sign

Carlos Alcaraz

Country: Spain
Age: 20 years old
Ranking: 1st
Race ranking: 2nd
2023 review: 30 wins, 3 losses

His season on earth

Buenos Aires (February ATP 250): Victory
Rio de Janeiro (February, ATP 500): Final
Barcelona (April, ATP 500): Victory
Madrid (May, Masters 1000): Victory
Rome (May, Masters 1000): Round of 16

Roland-Garros and him

This will already be his third participation. For his debut, in 2021, Carlos Alcaraz had come out of qualifying (which he had not been able to cross the previous year) before reaching the third round. Last year, it was with another status and other ambitions that the Murcien presented himself at the Porte d’Auteuil. He had climbed to the quarterfinals, where he had stumbled in four sets against a top Alexander Zverev. A half-disappointment, even at 19, which says a lot about his precocity…

What to expect from him in Paris?

The best, as always with him. He’s set the bar so high for the past year and a half that, regardless of age, he’s a candidate for victory everywhere off the grass for now anyway. Despite his Roman quack, he remains one of the big favorites if not the main contender for the title this year.

This is all the more true since, compared to last year, Rafael Nadal has the worries that everyone knows, Alexander Zverev is struggling to recover from his injury, Casper Ruud rowed a lot during this earthly spring and Stefanos Tsitsipas looking for a second wind. On the starting line, there is Novak Djokovic and him tied, on paper at least.

Then, beyond the exceptional qualities of the player, Alcaraz is made for the Grand Slams: sense and taste for combat, power and physical endurance (remember his career at the US Open last year), grinta, psychological strength. .. At the very least, it must do better than last year. But it is the coronation he has in mind. Twenty years after that of his trainer Juan Carlos Ferrero, the wink would be nice.

To monitor

Two things :

. His physic. “Carlitos” is a rock but the crystal sometimes points under the stone. Especially at the end of the tournament. We had seen it in Rio or Miami.

. His start to the tournament. Before winning in Madrid, he had suffered for his entry into the running against Emil Ruusuvuori. Then, in Rome, in his second match, he was overwhelmed by Fabian Marozsan. The winning three-set format reduces risk, but if he can avoid playing with the fire of entry, that wouldn’t be the worst idea.

The stat to keep in mind

If he lifts the Coupe des Mousquetaires on June 11 on the Philippe-Chatrier court, Carlos Alcaraz will, at 20 years and a month, have won the US Open and Roland-Garros. To find traces of a player who won two different Majors at such a young age, you have to go very, very far back. Nadal? Djokovic? Federer? Lost. They were respectively 22 years and one month, 22 years and 5 months, 22 years and 8 months.

The Spaniard would also do better than Lleyton Hewitt, the reference in this field so far in the 21st century. The Australian was 21 years and 5 months old when he won at Wimbledon in 2022, which followed that at the US Open in 2001.

You have to look back to the 80s to find better, with Mats Wilander. The Eurosport consultant, winner of Roland-Garros at 17, then added the Australian Open to his list in December 1983, at only 19 years and 4 months.