Neither mistakes on the court nor hip pain can knock Carlos Alcaraz off his feet | Relief
Midway through the third set, when the match became difficult for Carlos Alcaraz, the Spaniard approached the chair umpire with a specific complaint. “Do you think it is normal to hold a Grand Slam final on this court? This is a Grand Slam on land and it looks like a hard court. There is no land. It’s incredible, incredible“. The Murcian was dissatisfied with the state of the court due to its absence in the Parisian center. When this happens, the court becomes slightly faster and, in principle, better for a puncher like Zverev. It did not matter much, Alcaraz showed himself better than the German and eventually won match in the fifth set.
The bounce was somewhat irregular, making the match difficult for the Spaniard., who was also going through a bad tennis moment at the time, frustration at how difficult the final had become led him to complain to the referee, this time the Frenchman Renaud Liechtenstein, who could do nothing to rectify the situation. or. All you have to do is walk past the mat more often, which helps create a smoother surface and distribute the brick dust more evenly.
Juan Carlos Ferrero in the next paragraph asked him to calm down and not leave the game, that now is not the time to get lost, although the conditions may not be ideal for the game. “You gotta change your attitude– the coach pointed out to him from the stands. “I can’t play like that,” answered the Murcian, approaching the back of the court. This conversation could not have happened a year ago, because before gestures and conversations with the coach, they were limited and sanctioned. Ferrero’s advice did not go unheeded; Alcaraz lost the third set, but returned to victory.
Shortly after this complaint, Alcaraz had to be treated by a physical therapist due to pain in his left muscle. He gave him a quick massage, which was enough because from the fourth round onwards the Spanish player was back to his best level of play.
It was a bad moment for Alcaraz, who initially led 5-2 in the set before finding himself on the ropes in a set that his opponent eventually took. Alcaraz is not the only one to complain about the poor condition of the Philippe-Chatrier Court this season, in fact Novak Djokovic even exchanged views with the tournament supervisor as he understood that the condition of the surface was putting him at risk.