Former French Open semi-finalist Diego Schwartzman believes some of the frustration he is experiencing on the court is linked to the recent hospitalization of his father.
The world No.28 spoke about his current form after crashing out of the Cordoba Open on Thursday to compatriot Juan Manuel Cerundolo who is ranked almost 100 places lower than him. After losing a closely contested opening set, Schwartzman was blown away in the second as he crashed out 7-6(6), 6-1. So far this season he has won just one out of four matches played on the Tour.
The Argentine reached the final of the tournament in 2020 and was a semi-finalist in 2022. However, the top seed admits this year he has struggled to adapt to the surface which is partly related to his recent run of disappointing results.
“I arrived on Saturday. It’s been four or five days of training in the morning, in the afternoon and at night and I can’t adapt. Control of the ball is very difficult. The bounce of the ball is very high and that affects my way of playing a lot,” he said during an interview with reporters on Thursday.
“On top of that, I come with few games and little confidence. Maybe at another time I would solve it with rhythm, today it cost me much more.”
“It is a somewhat atypical tournament in terms of conditions and whoever adapts best is the one who wins. For me it is a place where I have certain discomforts, no matter how hard I always try. I come with less rhythm and that is felt when it comes to playing, when the opponent is fine.”
In recent weeks Schwartzman has also had to contend with an injury scare after retiring from his match at the ASB Classic due to a leg issue. He recovered in time to play at the Australian Open but was knocked out in straight sets by JJ Wolf in the second round.
Away from the court, the 30-year-old revealed that in recent days he has been spending time with his father who was admitted to hospital for three weeks but has since been released. It was not disclosed why Ricardo Schwartzman was in the hospital.
“My father was hospitalized for three weeks and just came out yesterday (Wednesday). I spent two weeks spending hours in the clinic,” Schwartzman explained.
“These are not excuses, but perhaps I have less patience. I feel more frustration when playing. My personal situation affects (me). If you see me train, I’m doing very well and that’s how I feel on a day-to-day basis, but when it comes to competing I’m not feeling my moments. Sometimes I try and I’m wrong, other times I stay a little further behind and I’m wrong. It is difficult to find any clear reason for him other than that sometimes discomfort is combined with a bad moment of confidence and it makes one play badly.”
As a result of his latest defeat, Schwartzman is set to exit the world’s top 30 for the first time since 2017, according to the ATP Pepperstone live rankings. At his best, he has been ranked as high as No.8 in the world and has won four Tour titles.
“Looking for solutions is going to be a big challenge I have in the next few weeks but I am sure I will find them,” he later wrote on Instagram.
On Monday Schwartzman will lose his title as Argentina’s top-ranked player to Francisco Cerundolo.
