Carlos Alcaraz looks set to play at the Madrid Open with the defending champion stating he is improving “little by little” ahead of the tournament.
The world No 3 hasn’t competed since losing in the quarter-final of the Miami Open as he withdrew from the Monte Carlo Masters and missed his Barcelona Open title defence last week due to a right forearm problem.
The official word from the Alcaraz camp is that he is not injured and he is simply feeling discomfort during training sessions, but they have opted not to take any risks
The two-time Grand Slam winner attended the Laureus Sports Awards and was asked by Spanish publication Marca about his forearm and replied: “I’m very good, we are better and little by little getting the best sensations.”
Alcaraz has a bye into the second round and he will face either Alexander Shevchenko or Arthur Rinderknech in his opening match, which is scheduled for Friday.
The Madrid Open will once again have a high-quality field despite tennis great Novak Djokovic’s absence.
Jannik Sinner is the top seed and the form player this year as he has won the Australian Open, Rotterdam Open and Miami Open while recent Barcelona champion Casper Ruud and Monte Carlo winner Stefanos Tsitsipas are also in the draw.
Asked who is going to win in Madrid, Alcaraz stated the trio along with Australian and world No 11 Alex de Minaur as players who “are in very good shape”
“Hopefully me. There are players who are in top form: Ruud, Tsitsipas, Sinner, De Minaur… There are tennis players who are in very good shape, but each match is different and anything can happen,” he said.
The spotlight will not only be on Alcaraz in Madrid as Spaniards are excited to see tennis great Rafael Nadal back in action after he missed last year’s clay-court season due to injury.
Naturally, the locals are dreaming of an Alcaraz-Nadal final.
“It would be incredible, both for me and for many people, it would be a dream final,” Alcaraz said.
Nadal, though, has played only five matches since returning to action at the beginning of the year with three taking place in January and his most recent outing coming in Barcelona where he defeated Fabio Cobolli in the first round before losing against De Minaur.
The 20-year-old added: “Honestly, I don’t know much either, from what it shows he is fighting to try to be in the best possible shape. He was able to play in the Godo [Barcelona], we all saw that he was not at his best, but seeing him on the court was a joy for everyone.”