Carlos Alcaraz has dismissed suggestions that he is the clear favourite to win the Barcelona Open as the Spaniard finalizes his preparations for the event following an injury-related break.
The world No.2 has missed the start of the European clay swing after pulling out of the Monte Carlo Masters following advice from his doctors. The 19-year-old was diagnosed with post-traumatic arthritis in his left hand which is a short-term condition that usually occurs when there has been an acute injury to a joint. He had also been suffering from muscular discomfort in his back.
Despite the setback, Alcaraz has managed to quickly recover in time for his title defence at the Barcelona Open where he is the top seed. This year’s draw features four out of the world’s top 10 players.
“I have trained with (Denis) Shapovalov and (Casper) Ruud and it has gone very well for me,” Alcaraz said during media day on Saturday. “I need the rhythm of the competition, to play points and with these players I can do it.”
Recently 12-time champion Rafael Nadal and world No.5 Daniil Medvedev have pulled out of the event. Asked if those two absences strengthened his position as favourite for the title, Alcaraz played down the suggestion. He has already won one title on the clay this season in February at the Argentina Open and was runner-up in Rio. Since then, he went on to triumph in Indian Wells which briefly secured his return to world No.1.
“I love playing here in Barcelona, my family and I have friends who are going to come,” he said.
“We are going to try to avoid the pressure of defending the title and go out on the court and enjoy ourselves. There have been big absences like Rafa and Medvedev, who were candidates to win the tournament, but the lack of them doesn’t make me feel more of a favourite. Every player in the draw can beat me.”
12 months ago at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona, Alcaraz scored back-to-back three-set wins over Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alex de Minaur en route to the final. Then in the title match, he dropped only five games against Pablo Carreno Busta.
A Lot has changed for the Spaniard since then who won his maiden Grand Slam trophy last September at the US Open. But how does Alcaraz see his game on the court compared to 2022?
“I am more mature than last year, I read things better in case there is something that is going wrong,” he explained. “The leap that I have made is due to maturity and the ability I have to read things on the court. The titles have not changed me as a person. I feel like the same guy as always, with the same group of friends. You have to separate tennis from your personal life.”
So far Alcaraz has recorded a win-loss record of 18-2 this season with Cameron Norrie and Jannik Sinner being the only players to have beaten him. He will begin his Barcelona title defence against either Portugal’s Nuno Borges or Ilya Ivashka from Belarus.
