Jaume Munar, one of the five members who will try to win the Spanish team’s seventh Saladera these days, still expresses himself in amazement: “Wow, incredible! It’s amazing. What a rhythm! It seems like they’re playing ping-pong!”. They are not the exclusive target of admiration on the part of the fans, but also of the professionals themselves, shocked by the speed at which those electric and fierce rallies take place between the two outliers. Also by the continuity; that is, they bite one and the other, and do not let go. From start to finish. From coast to coast. The downloads go viral and the rivalry continues to grow.
“The consistency he has, point after point, generates a little more anxiety in you; you have to be at that level, or even more. And the fact that he is always there, there and there is what makes Jannik unstoppable,” he described the night before the Murcian, referring to that oppressive sensation that the one in front feels when Sinner picks up the pace and accelerates, unleashing perfect shots towards all corners of the court. Between the two of them, good friends, sparks and more sparks and tennis always at the limit. Logically, bodies do not always resist. , in the master final, and now Spain awaits: How will the world number one arrive at Thursday’s opening in the Davis Cup?
“Will it hurt me for Bologna? I think not. Or so I hope…”, he continued after giving in in the last fight with Sinner and his hamstring muscles, a usual source of problems, warned him that he had to control his pace. Danger. and, at this point, forced maneuvers can be costly. Although he is now a little taller than in that initial phase on the elite circuit in which he chased every ball like a runaway horse, he does not usually skimp. Its long shapes are privileged, as well as delicate. A lot of background and preventive work, and now, a question mark just two days before the debut against the Czech Republic at the Fiera di Bologna.
How is Alcaraz? “Good,” he answers upon arrival at the hotel to meet the rest of the expedition. That is, with captain David Ferrer and his teammates, Jaume Munar, Pedro Martínez, Pablo Carreño and doubles player Marcel Granollers. Everyone was waiting for news and the results of the MRI that the tennis player had this Monday afternoon, after having traveled by van the 300 kilometers that separate Turin from Bologna in the morning. Everyone looks at that right ischium, massaged and bandaged during the game, although without major problems during development. Still, stiffness and discomfort. He was able, in any case, to finish it with only the medical attention received during the interval between one set and another
Background
“Maybe sometimes I can act crazy, in the sense of going for impossible balls and sliding; obviously it has limited me, but beyond that, I have been able to play normally,” he reassured. However, this Monday the planned script within the team was altered. Initially, the players were going to offer the traditional press conference in the early afternoon, but it was finally postponed to the next day. Alcaraz, question of tennis status. With or without him, everything changes. The player from El Palmar (22 years old) went to a medical center accompanied by the doctor from the Spanish federation, Ángel Ruiz Cotorro, and his analysis was joined by that of the tennis player’s personal doctor, Juanjo López, after the tests were sent.
The suspense ended around ten at night, when federative sources told the media present in Bologna, including EL PAÍS, that the circuit leader “does not suffer a break” and that the mishap is due to a “muscular overload” due to the accumulation of effort. Consequently, Alcaraz will not exercise this Tuesday along with his teammates and will rest, waiting for the evolution to be positive and to be tested on Wednesday, before the premiere (10.00, Movistar+). That is to say, in principle, good news, in that the situation requires jealously monitoring an area that has been giving him war in this first stage of his career.
It is not strange to see Alcaraz with one or the other thigh wrapped in compression bandages during training, if not in games. And in January 2023, an aggressive maneuver during a rehearsal led to a tear in the semimembranosus muscle (integrated into the hamstrings) of the right leg, for which . It reappeared in mid-February, in Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro, but with a grade 1 strain in the right ischium. This season, the same muscle region suffered during the Godó final and forced his disappearance from the Madrid Masters 1000 draw, despite his attempt to play.
The test carried out this Monday afternoon – with images from various perspectives – did not reveal the presence of any bruising, so Ferrer and the rest of the group are confident that the Murcian can participate in the quarter-final series against the Czech Republic. “We are focused on our own interests,” indicated his coach, Tomas Berdych; This, for sure, was less calm than the day before, when Alcaraz called the physio and his competition was in the air.
