Carlos Alcaraz is one of the favourites to win at the 2023 Roland Garros and Barbara Schett feels the Spanish player will win in Paris, no matter how successful he is this season.
Alcaraz ramped up his preparation for the 2023 Roland Garros with a strong showing early in the clay court season with wins in the Madrid Open and Barcelona Open. But the 20-year-old was unable to make it three event wins from three on clay as he crashed out in the round of 32 at the Italian Open following a shock loss to world number 135 Fabian Marozsan.
The generally impressive form on clay followed previous ATP wins at Indian Wells and the Argentina Open this season. When sharing her thoughts with Eurosport on Alcaraz's chances at the French Open, Schett believes the world number one is on another level and that it's only a matter of time before he is victorious at Roland Garros.
"Alcaraz has won six tournaments this year and the way he played in Madrid and Barcelona, he is full of confidence, He has taken tennis to a whole new level which we didn’t think was possible after witnessing the Big Three in the past. I think he can win it and I’m sure he will win it in the future."
After Alcaraz's loss in the Italian Open, concerns were raised about the Spaniard's fitness levels and possible fatigue, which the 2022 US Open champion denied was an issue. However, Schett argues that one potential weakness for Alcaraz could be his ability to sustain such a high level of physicality over a long period.
"The only thing I worry about in the long-term is him physically and how his body will hold up over 15 years. I thought the exact same thing with Rafael Nadal, though, because of his physical game and his knee and foot problem, but then he has had such a long career. To me, if he is healthy, he will No. 1 for a good few years,"
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