WATCH: Alcaraz 'Working Hard' To Attain Full Fitness At Coach Ferrero's Academy

Saturday, 18 May 2024 at 19:50

byNurein Ahmed

Carlos Alcaraz is stepping up on his preparations for Roland Garros after his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, shared a positive update on his progress.

Alcaraz, who celebrated his 21st birthday earlier this month, has been sidelined from competing on the ATP Tour since surrendering his Madrid Open crown to Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinal stage at the start of May.

The young Spaniard's European clay-court swing has largely been unproductive. Alcaraz missed high-profile tournaments such as the Monte-Carlo Masters, Barcelona Open, and most recently, the Italian Open.

His absence from the three tournaments almost cost him his spot in the top three until Daniil Medvedev faltered in Madrid and Rome, enabling Alcaraz to lock up the No. 3 seeding at Roland Garros.

But Alcaraz's participation in Paris was far from certain, with a forearm injury shattering his plan and preparation. Although he played in Madrid in front of his home fans, the two-time Grand Slam champion insisted he was still in pain when he spoke to reporters after the match.

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For two weeks, Alcaraz did not lift a racket as he practiced air swings in training to restore muscle strength and prevent the recurrence of forearm pain.

With Roland Garros fast approaching, Alcaraz's physios and specialists have performed miracles to put him on the road to full fitness before the tournament, where he is the oddsmakers' outright favorite.

He returned to the Ferrero Tennis Academy while still wearing an arms sleeve. He took part in an intensive practice session supervised by all his coaches, including Juan Carlos Ferrero himself.

"These days @carlitosalcarazz is working hard on trying to recover in order to be ready for the upcoming tournaments! Vamos Carlitos, tú puede."

— Ferrero shared a sneak peek of Alcaraz's practice

If he is fit to play, he will contest his fourth main draw at the French Open. He has an 11-3 record there. His best result was last year's semifinal finish when he lost to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in four sets.