At Roland Garros,
Just yesterday morning, we were still wondering if there was something capable of stopping the Carlos Alcaraz fighting machine, the young Spaniard seeming very strong, too strong, and too complete, since the start of the fortnight, so that no one can prevent him from winning his first Roland-Garros at just 20 years old. Barely a few hours later, the kid finally served us the answer himself on a platter. Cramped at the start of the third set, during a semi-final against Novak Djokovic, who started on promising bases, the Murcian broke down both physically and mentally. Proof once again that the body and the spirit are intimately linked, the cabin of Alcaraz dropped because of the carafe.
Asked at a press conference an hour after his defeat in four sets about the reasons for these cursed cramps, the world number 1 put it on the back of “the tension due to the match”. “I was very nervous at the start of the game, during the first set and second set, he explained. The two sets were very intense, with beautiful exchanges, difficult exchanges, drop shots, sprints, and more exchanges. There was a combination of different styles of play, but the main reason was the tension I felt.” In question, the issue of a first final at Roland within shooting range, of course, but also and above all the identity of the guy opposite, in search of his 23rd Grand Slam title.
Djokovic has already experienced this
“It’s not easy to play against Novak. He is a legend of this sport. If someone says they come onto the court to play against them without feeling nervous, they are lying! Of course, playing a semi-final, we are very nervous, but even more when we are facing Novak, he admitted with a smile. That is the truth. Next time I’m up against him, I hope I’ll feel a little different, but I’ll still be nervous! “. Passing through a conference a few minutes later, we told Djokovic what Alcaraz had just said, before asking him if he too had already experienced this stress cramp syndrome.
Answer: “Yes it has happened to me several times, I understand how he may have felt and I know that emotions can affect you physically. Being in one of the biggest tournaments in the world, for the first time in the position of favorite and not outsider, that must have affected him. But that’s part of learning, he’s young, he still has time, he’s already shown great maturity. He is the youngest world number 1 in history, he has already won a grand slam at 19, I have immense respect for what he has already achieved.
Cramps throughout the body
That’s all well and good, but by the way, what are stress cramps, Jammy? Well, as the name suggests, these are cramps due to… stress. Thank you Doctor, it will be 70 euros. We laugh but it’s as simple as that. According to our colleagues from Health Magazine“when we are stressed, our muscles contract, which can then cause pain in the head, neck, back…”.
For Alcaraz, it started in the arm, before spreading to the whole body. “I had a cramp in my arm, and at the start of the third set, I started having cramps all over my body, not just in my legs, arms as well, all parts of my legs. It was very difficult for me to move in the third set. In the fourth set, I had a small chance, but it was really difficult. My whole body started cramping. »
While the Spaniard was being massaged on the court at the start of the third set, Doctor Andy Roddick tried to give him some good advice on Twitter: “He must spare himself for the next 20 minutes. No big races. He must sacrifice this set if necessary… Take all the time necessary between the points. He should start eating regularly immediately. “Wrote the former American player on Twitter before, a few minutes later, making a new, darker diagnosis. “Maybe he was close to being physically exhausted. He would need 2 hours in perfect health to overcome this. His legs don’t have what it takes. I think it’s over…”. Well done, Andy.
“It’s part of the process,” writes Kyrgios
But while we imagined seeing him land shot at a press conference, Carlos Alcaraz appeared rather cool. Naturally optimistic, he chose to see things philosophically. “It’s disappointing to end like this, but these are things that happen, you have to accept. It hurts me of course, to leave Roland in half in this way… But I always said that I was someone positive, so I will try to stay that way. So I tell myself that I will take this experience and try to get the best out of it for the future. »
Unlike the many physical glitches that have fallen on the corner of his nose in recent months – the Spaniard has chained no less than five injuries in seven months – this slack there does not seem to be as worrying since it is primarily linked to the emotional management of the event. It could even be a blessing in disguise for the rest of his career.
In any case, that’s what Nick Kyrgios, one of his biggest fans on the circuit, thinks. “A thought for Alcaraz, he wrote on Twitter on Friday. It’s part of his learning process. Cramps from the nervousness and anxiety of playing a match of this magnitude, I’m pretty sure every tennis player has to go through this. He will learn to deal with this in the future, that’s for sure. And we will be afraid. “The only one to be afraid, for the moment, is Casper Ruud, opposed this Sunday in the final to a “Djoker” on a sacred mission and against whom he has never won a single set in four confrontations