World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz was delighted after his straight set 6-4 7-6(5) 6-3 win against America’s Sebastian Korda at the Court Philippe-Chatrier on Friday. The Spaniard was taken to four sets by Dutch qualifier Jesper de Jong in the second round and he said played better against the American.
Alcaraz said that the right arm injury is no longer on his mind and he wants to keep up the good show in the upcoming matches.
Alcaraz said after the win, “It was a really good match. I think I played really, really, well, much better than the previous match. This was something that I really want: to get in the rally, to play good points, feeling [like] myself on the court, and I think I did that really well.”
The 21-year-old had recently withdrawn from the Italian Open due to his injury and he seems to be on the right track as he is hitting the ball without much discomfort in his arm.
“I have not had any ups and downs of concentration and there was a moment from which I completely forgot about the discomfort in my arm and started hitting with my forehand completely normally.
“I put in a lot of intensity to my tennis today and during the tiebreak, I hit two drives that made me realize how much I missed this feeling. Also, my forearm continues to improve.”
The youngster feels he, Novak Djokovic, and Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner are favorites for the ongoing Roland Garros but anything can happen in the second week of the tournament as the level of tennis will certainly increase.
“I still think that there is a large list of players who can become champions here. It is true that Sinner, Djokovic and I are acquiring rhythm and gaining confidence as the rounds go by, I think it is as if we are becoming more dangerous for the rest.”
He continued, “However, anything can happen, there is great equality and the level of the matches that are coming up now, starting with the round of 16, is going to be very high and demanding for everyone.”
