Alcaraz seeks to settle in the land of Monte Carlo upon Djokovic’s return

The big clay court season begins. In fact, it has already started this week with tournaments in Houston and Marrakech, but this Sunday marks the start of the first of the important tournaments on the clay calendar. The Monte Carlo Masters 1000 took over the tennis scene with the three main names in the table.

For different circumstances. One, because no. Rafa Nadal, eleven-time champion (from 2005 to 2012 and from 2016 to 2018) This will be the most notable absence from the tournament after his injury in the Indian Wells Masters 1000, a stress crack in the rib that will not allow him to attend this week. The Balearic thus missed the start of the most important block of the season for him. A priori has confirmed his presence in Madrid, it remains to be seen if he will arrive in time to play Godó next week.

Another piece of news come back. Novak Djokovic He does so without the Monte Carlo restrictions that prevent him from playing for the unvaccinated against the coronavirus. The Serbian is back on the tracks as number 1 in the world after the ephemeral reign of Daniel Medvedev. The Russian was another of the notable casualties in the contest after being operated on a hernia a few days ago. In the same way does not participate in the event Dominic Thiempositive for coronavirus a few days ago, shortly after reappearing after his long wrist injury.

And of course, another news because it already. Carlos Alcaraz the clay court tour began after it was confirmed a few days ago that the promise label that was about to become a reality had already made a definite change. The brand-new Miami Masters 1000 champion came in for the first time with multiple drawings in a major tournament, ready to show that his tennis understands a lot of carat and minimal surfaces and has the necessary belief that, perhaps not the main everyone’s favorite, Yes, he’s a candidate for everyone.

alcaraz He has already shown that his tennis is perfectly suited to both hard and clay courts. A few days to assemble the game in passage from one type of track to another is one of the variables that can create some unknown around its figure. His performance in clay tournaments is not like that: he has already won the ATP 500 in Rio de Janeiro this year, the biggest tournament played to date on clay.

In two titles this year, Alcaraz is just over a hundred points from a top10 who aspires to tread for the first time in his career in eight days. Doing so, in fact, is a real possibility for him, with no points to defend in this tournament since he didn’t play last year. It seems the moment when he entered the group of those chosen was more than time.

But he wanted to do it in a big way and destiny prepared a high-carat painting for him in the Principality of Monaco. number 11 in the world, go straight to the second round Yes eighth seed because there are three top 10 missing in the tournament (in addition to Medvedev and Nadal, Matteo Berrettini is also absent), which will ease the overload of matches. They, yes, promise to be impressive: possibly against the debut sebastian kordapossible round of 16 battles Taylor Fritz (Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Marin Cilic as alternatives) and, in the quarterfinals, one of the tournament’s best moments could come.

Alcaraz shared the box with Novak Djokovic, that he will face in the penultimate round if the prophecies are fulfilled. This yes, the Serbian way is not easy through Monaco: it can wait for him Alexander Davidovich in the second round and Robert Baptist in the eighth. Alcaraz and Djokovic share part of the semifinals with Casper Ruud and Cameron Norrie. Meanwhile, at the bottom, some hypothetical quarters can be projected by ranking between Stefanos Tsitsipas (who will compete in the debut Fabio Fognini) and Felix Auger-Aliassimeon the one hand, and in between Alexander Zverev and Andrey Rublevfor others.

A sum of six Spanish participate in the final draw of the tournament. Lampas alcarazfor that high side Davidovich he had to beat Marcos Giron in the first round to meet Djokovic in the second. while, Baptist He was on that hypothetical path of possible rivalry with ‘Nole’ Daniel Evans as a rival in the first round and, predictably, David Goffin in the second. Besides, Peter Martinez will debut against Ugo Humbert and if he passes he will face Hubert Hurkacz or Gaël Monfils and Albert Ramos He rivals Tallon Griekspoor if he wants to face Cameron Norrie in the second round.

For the lower part of the painting will march Pablo Carreno. The Asturian will face a rival from earlier in his debut and, if he wins, he will face Stan Wawrinka or Alexander Bublik in the second. He will go in the path of Alexander Zverev, who he will face in the round of 16.

Stefanos Tsitsipas defended the title he won last year after defeating Andrey Rublev in the final. The unknown form of the state of Djokovicthe hatching of alcaraz and the work of ‘Next generation’ They will be the main argument of a Monte Carlo Masters 1000 that, in the absence of the king, is looking for a prince in 2022.