By Fabrizio Gallas – Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Jiri Lehecka, Jannik Sinner. The Madrid tournament was a real joke. Or would it be a warning due to the format of the calendar with the swollen Masters 1000 on clay?
Madrid and Rome adopted the 12-day format, 14 counting qualifying, last year. But this year’s edition was not at all pleasant and has already had a negative impact on Rome with Alcaraz’s absence and the crowd arriving at the yard for the Foro Itálico tournament which starts in the middle of next week.
What is certain is that the $$ spoke louder as it has been with the pressure of Saudi Arabia’s entry into tennis for a possible Masters 1000 at the start of the season in a few years’ time. If, on the one hand, the bigger draws provide more opportunities – the Brazilian men’s teams benefited from this this year – on the other hand, everyone needs to play one more game in both tournaments. Coming from an exhausting March on the American hard court with Indian Wells and Miami and Roland Garros, a Grand Slam worth more points and prizes, it is notable that people take precautions with any type of pain.
The top player who knows he has a good chance in Paris will not kill himself to aggravate any type of injury in a Masters 1000 round that is worth half the points, money and visibility as in Paris. Even though most games have a rest day, there are rounds one after the other and this had an impact on the performance in Nadal’s defeat in the round of 16, for example. Clay is the most difficult surface in tennis, the games take longer and the point build-up is greater. Another point is the issue of altitude. The game is very different in terms of conditions.
We will have a final between Rublev x Aliassime. Something very unlikely. Maybe no one guessed it at any bookmaker before the tournament started. And for those who expected a big decision and bought a ticket for this final, it will end up, I would say, less attractive.
Let’s wait for the Rome tournament where more problems are expected. And then see if Madrid was in fact something out of the ordinary or if the new format didn’t work.
It’s a chance for the guys at the bottom to take advantage. Why not Brazilians? They did well in Madrid and can shine again in Italy. This week has been that of Aliassime, who was a little down with injuries and results and won with two retirements in the quarters and semis. The tide has turned for him and the Canadian is taking advantage.
