Djokovic and Alcaraz Big Contenders at Roland Garros, Corretja Says

Wednesday, 24 May 2023 at 10:00

Updated at Wednesday, 13 August 2025 at 11:36

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byAlex Waite

Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz have the experience and skills to go all the way at the 2023 Roland Garros, according to Alex Corretja.

Djokovic will enter the second major of the season off the back of a dip in form, despite winning his 22nd Grand Slam at the Australian Open in January. In contrast, World number one Alcaraz has been in top form and has won four ATP titles this season, including Indian Wells and clay court competitions, the Barcelona Open and Madrid Open.

Both players certainly have the credentials to race into contention at Roland Garros. When speaking to Eurosport, former player Corretja gave his assessment of the pair and said that Djokovic's psychological approach to Grand Slams could give him an edge.

"He knows how to win [at Roland-Garros], he has done it already twice and he has won so many majors, he knows how to deal with the pressure even though he didn't have an unbelievable clay-court season, He is going little by little and he will increase his level. He knows how to be the favourite of the tournament, and I think Novak is going to be ready to do well."

- Corretja said to Eurosport

However, Corretja also feels that Alcaraz is in a good place to develop a good run at Roland Garros. Last season, the 20-year-old was eliminated in the quarter-final stage and Corretja said that such an experience will help the Spanish player this time around.

“He had the experience from last year at Roland-Garros, where it was pretty much the first time that he was in the big spot to see if he can do well. And he's going to deal with the situation in a totally different way. He is going to be more relaxed from the very first round. Even if he needs to win and to suffer, he will be ready for that."

"He knows already that a lot of attention is going to be on his shoulders because, especially for the Spanish press, there is no Rafa there. But I think he is totally ready. He has been dealing with the situation extremely well. And I think he is absolutely ready to do well at Roland-Garros.”