French Open: Carlos Alcaraz in for a ‘big battle’ against Novak Djokovic and will “suffer” – Alex Corretja

Carlos Alcaraz is in for a “big battle” against Novak Djokovic in their French Open semi-final and will “suffer” at times during the match, reckons Eurosport’s Alex Corretja.

Corretja has witnessed Alcaraz’s momentous 2023 Roland-Garros campaign up close, watching him from courtside and regularly talking to the young Spaniard after his matches.

But now comes Alcaraz’s biggest test with a last-four clash against Novak Djokovic, in a match that many were hoping for when the draw was made.

“Everybody is so pumped for Carlitos to do well here at Roland-Garros,” Corretja said. “They are expecting that big clash against Djokovic.

“I’m sure it’s not going to be easy, but everyone is confident with Alcaraz back home; that he can do well and play well, being ready, but he’s going to suffer, because it’s not easy to beat Djokovic in best of five.

“He needs to be patient, and wait for his chance. He needs to play his game. He doesn’t need to change anything specific. He will need to be there knowing that Novak has plenty of experience of best of fives, that he’s going to play deep and long rallies.

“Novak is going to try to serve well. Carlos needs to dictate; playing aggressively, but not rushing. It’s difficult to maintain the level for two and a half, three hours, trying to win every single point.

“It’s good to be creative, but he might need to be practical, not going for every shot for a winner, because Novak might play quite stably. He’s going to do as best he can, using his experience, his serve, and playing as deep as he can so Carlos can’t dictate and play a lot of drop shots or winners.

“I’m expecting a big battle, but I think Carlos has a bit more variation in his game, but Novak has, for sure, more experience.”

Much has been made of the influence of Juan Carlos Ferrero on Alcaraz, with the French Open champion from 2003 now acting as coach to the 20-year-old.

Corretja labelled their combination as “almost unbeatable”.

“If you see Alcaraz, it’s obvious he’d play well with whoever [coached him],” Corretja added.

“I don’t know if he’d be that quick, that determined, or have the way he knows how to handle a situation. Having Ferrero next to him, who’s had similar situations to him in the past, that’ll help him so much.

“You need to have the player, then if you have a great coach like Juan Carlos, the combination is almost unbeatable.”

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