‘Lost 6 Times at Roland Garros’: Daniil Medvedev Clears Feelings on Carlos Alcaraz’s Absence at French Open
Clay’s most electrifying artist, Carlos Alcaraz, will not grace Court Philippe-Chatrier this fortnight, and the silence left by his absence feels heavier than any roar he could have sparked. A right wrist injury suffered during his Barcelona Open opener brutally halted a clay campaign before it could breathe, while Wimbledon has now slipped away, too.
Carlos Alcaraz defeated Daniil Medvedev in the final at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells TENNIS : Indian Wells 2023 - 19/03/2023 AntoineCouvercelle/Panoramic PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxFRAxITAxBEL ©IMAGO/PanoramiC Clay’s most electrifying artist, Carlos Alcaraz , will not grace Court Philippe-Chatrier this fortnight, and the silence left by his absence feels heavier than any roar he could have sparked. A right wrist injury suffered during his Barcelona Open opener brutally halted a clay campaign before it could breathe, while Wimbledon has now slipped away, too. Yet for Daniil Medvedev , Carlos’ withdrawal changes nothing, as the Russian marches into Paris determined to push deeper than ever on the surface that once resisted him.
“I’ll be honest, for me it doesn’t make a difference because it’s Roland Garros, I’ve never been in the semis here,” Daniil added at the press conference this Friday when asked about how much of a difference it makes going into the tournament like this without Carlos, where the Russian has beaten the defending champion earlier this year at Indian Wells. Even though Alcaraz will not be competing in Paris, Medvedev made it clear that he is focused only on surviving one match at a time. “I take it a match at a time.
Of course, if I’m in semis and I play Jannik and maybe you know that Carlos isn’t there on the other side… you’re like ‘okay, maybe it’s kind of an easier challenge to try to win the whole thing. ’ But at the moment we’re not there,” Medevedev added later. The former US Open champion also pointed toward his difficult history at the Parisian clay.
Despite being one of the top players of his generation, Paris has rarely been kind to him. “I’m playing my 1st round, which I probably lost 6 times at Roland Garros, so I just want to do my best and try to go further through the draw,” Daniil said. “And Jannik here or not there doesn’t change much my approach to the tournament.
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