All Eyes On Them (Again)

TENNIS AT THE TOP IS A JOURNEY
Auger-Alissime found a way back to his long-term career plan

It’s not that Felix Auger-Aliassime's start of the year was bad. It’s just that for a player whose ambitions are to fight at the top, it was not cutting it anymore. “It’s getting better and better”, he told me in Madrid before starting the event. “I went back to training after a US swing that was a bit frustrating and disappointing regarding my level. Doubts were going through my mind during matches and also at practice. I then tried to think clearly, thinking that I needed to focus on the long-term regarding my game but also wondering what I could do in the short term to try to win as many matches as possible. We also had a great talk with the team. I needed to keep working to get better but I also needed to take advantage of the tournaments I was playing now. I feel my confidence is growing, that all is going in the right direction.” Well, how right was he?!

But the Canadian, who struggled with a knee injury last year, has never been the type to hit the panic button, believing that his journey might be different than a Jannik Sinner’s but that, in the end, it will land around the same spot. “It always takes time with me. When I reached the Top 10 for the first time, it wasn’t in the blink of an eye either: it was building throughout a few years. But I’ve always kept climbing, no matter the ups and downs, so I hope to get back on that path now. Each player has his timeline and I respect that.”

So there’s been no panic. “The thing is that, when I was not playing that well but had a better ranking, nobody was going crazy because “oh he’s still World No.8!” I stay focused on myself as much as I can. I’m obviously open to criticism, but only when it’s meaningful. Also sometimes it’s tricky to look at what others are doing: sure Jannik and Carlos are doing great things, and I’d love to be where they are, but at the same time, you build your game on your strength so how do I want to win, how do I want to play, how am I giving myself the best chances to win the Masters 1000s and the Grand Slam titles? That’s the real question.”

In the meantime, “FAA” got his swag back in Madrid and, hopefully, for good as there’s no denying that the sport needs him on and off the court in that ideal cast of the new wave. He was obviously the first one to be relieved in Madrid, especially after beating Casper Ruud: “Such a great win, such a great relief because it had been a while since I beat a player like that. It’s amazing to keep believing in yourself, in your game, and then find a way to show it to everybody. I’ve always believed I had everything to play great on clay too and this match will remain a great reference for me.”

But Auger-Alissime insists that he didn’t need that final in Madrid to keep his hopes and ambitions alive. “I didn’t need that week to keep believing because I’ve always believed”, he said after the final. “Ranking is one thing, but it’s just a number that comes and goes. In the end, I want to be the best tennis player I can be, I want to be proud of my career and my efforts every week. I’m on the right track and I’m convinced I’m going to live other great moments on the court. You just have to accept the rough times.”

Toni Nadal on the way out, but Felix’s father joins the team

He also confirmed in Spain that he was no longer working with Toni Nadal, opting to bring in his father to join Frédéric Fontang in the coaching box. “I never close the door and I’m not a fan of always announcing what I’m doing. So I keep the door open, and Toni is someone I really appreciate a lot: we had a lot of good moments together. But after Indian Wells and Miami, I decided I wanted to go to the clay season with Fred and my father. For now, Toni isn’t there but I’m not saying we’ll never see him again on a tournament at some point. We’re still in touch.” Why did he ask his dad to join? “He’s always been a great source of motivation for me. I have so much respect for him. He hasn’t won Grand Slam titles but I admire him a lot and also he has great self-confidence and a big presence so it gives me confidence. That’s a strength we can use in the team.” As often, Felix Auger-Aliassime has a long-term plan.

WHAT HAPPENS IN ROME… 
It’s still all about Djokovic and Nadal

Had Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz been here, it would have been less obvious. Had Iga Swiatek lost in Madrid after losing in Stuttgart, she’d have taken a nice share of tennis followers’ attention span. But she won so, for now, it’s back to business as usual. “Usually I would say, even if I win, it doesn't stick in my head”, said Swiatek to the press in Rome. “I celebrate for one day, then I'm off to another tournament in my head. Right now I really want to celebrate this one because we just fought for it really hard. I would say I'm giving myself time to play tennis in a more relaxed way, not thinking about playing matches or points because we don't have time to rest properly. You also have to use these days and I treat them a little bit like days off.”

And so even in 2024, it’s still all about Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. When do they train? How do they train? Oh, why is Rafa wearing a protective sock on that leg? Does Novak look ready to go? It’s all over the place: all eyes on them. Why? Well, because it should be Rafa’s last year on Tour and we’re still not fully sure he’ll show up at Roland-Garros. As for Novak, he’s been playing hide and seek for weeks and remains the biggest mystery of that season. But the main reason is obvious: They’re still the biggest names in the game and the biggest narratives. Is that a good sign for a sport that is trying hard to build its younger stars’ brands? Who knows! But as long as they’re around, really nobody is going to complain.

The World No.1, who decided to grace the Tour with his presence for only the fourth time this year, sounded confident. It’s only his second tournament on clay after reaching the semi-finals in Monte-Carlo. History has shown that he needed lots of play on clay to really peak at Roland-Garros but this year “Nole” is trying to defy the odds. And it’s not like he didn’t get a bit of help with the recent injuries of Sinner, Alcaraz, and Medvedev.

Djokovic’s 2024 is a conscious gamble. “I had plenty of time to also rest and train. Had a good training block. I think I'm on a good route to peak at Roland Garros in Paris. Hopefully, here in Rome, I can play better than I did in Monte-Carlo.” He has also confirmed the return of Gebhardt Gritsch as his fitness trainer: “It didn't take much time to adapt to his program and approach. We know each other really well. That's why I feel like we're synchronized from the very beginning in terms of what we want to do, and how we want to approach the program of training on and off the court. I'm pleased with the way the last 10 days, 14 days went in terms of training, in terms of preparation, and looking ahead to this tournament, particularly Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the Olympic Games. That's the block for which we are preparing the most.”

After an emotional exit in Madrid, Rafael Nadal sounded the most upbeat we’ve heard from him since he came back. The body is still keeping up with his desire to be competitive and so for now it’s a good omen all around. “It’s my third week almost in a row on the tour, the third tournament almost in a row. That didn't happen since a super long time ago. That's good news. Let's see. I need to keep going. I need to keep exploring how I will be able to manage to play every day. I am happy the way that I feel today.” (…) I'm excited and feel lucky to be playing here again at this stage of my career. (…) If after that I feel ready to play Roland Garros, I cannot predict what kind of emotions I am going to have there.”

Nadal has again explained that the only reason he’s retiring is because his body is done with the sport. But if it was just about desire, Nadal wouldn’t even think about leaving. “I just want to enjoy every day. I am enjoying playing tennis. When I'm talking about retirement, it’s not because I'm not happy anymore playing tennis or I'm not feeling competitive enough. That's not the case. It's about the body that was not able to play weeks in a row, was not able to allow me to practice and enjoy the practices. Then arrives a moment when that doesn't make sense: if you're not able to do things the proper way on a daily basis, you are not able to enjoy because of the pain and the injuries on a daily basis, it's almost impossible to have success or to keep fighting for the things that really motivate me. But now is my third week on the tour almost in a row, so it's a good moment, even if the results are not what they used to be. But I am increasing my level. Let's see. I want to keep going.”

Osaka praises Swiatek

Asked about her thoughts about Iga Swiatek’s domination, Naomi Osaka had this very honest answer on how she just couldn’t have done it like that when she was at the top of the game. There’s not one way of being a World No.1. “I think she's incredible. The way she's able to maintain being No.1 and constantly do well at all the tournaments is something that I honestly can't think of or can't fathom back when I was No. 1 for like five seconds (smiling). I think she's great for the sport.” What would also be great for the sport? These two stars colliding regularly on Tour.

QUESTION OF THE DAY 
What if you could…

You were 62,50% to let me know that you’d want more editions of the newsletter during Roland-Garros. So let’s see what I’ll come up with so those who voted yes are satisfied and those who said no thanks aren’t annoyed 😂 

MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO 
Juventus on Sinner’s hip mission

Jannik Sinner has picked the medical team of the football club Juventus in Torino to try to heal that hip on time for Roland-Garros. The Italian made an appearance in Rome on Tuesday, setting the crowd into a frenzy, before heading home to Monte-Carlo for a few days and then leaving for Torino to start treatment, as the Gazzetta reveals. Sinner and his team have picked the medical center of Juventus, which has dealt with Cristiano Ronaldo or Matteo Berrettini, to do the “hip job”.

A worrying study regarding female athletes’ health

It’s time for sports to deal better with menstrual cycles. A study, published in Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise after researching footballers in the Women’s Super League, found out that “the players were six times more likely to experience a muscle injury during the pre-menstrual phase and five times more likely to experience an injury during the early-mid luteal phase, compared to when they were in the menstrual phase.”

The study's authors at UCL and the University of Bath are urging for more research to gather more data on the topic. “Conducting large-scale research is complex but must be prioritised to best support female athletes, and we hope studies like this will pave the way for this. Every woman has their own unique physiology, so it’s crucial to support and empower them in the right ways. If future research demonstrates that there are risk windows for certain injury types, we should be proactive in mitigating these risks to enable female athletes to exercise and compete on any given day.”

BUSINESS / MEDIA 
Wimbledon’s bag hits a record

• It might all be about those strawberries. Or it might all be about tennis. Who knows, really?! Whatever it is, it made a lot of money for Wimbledon as the tournament’s income is now £380m, a raise of £33,6m from last year. The tournament has made more money than before Covid-19 hit the world (£292m in 2019). The Times explains that £200m of this 2023 record is understood to be coming from broadcast rights. Players this year should be hopeful for getting a bigger share of this pie.
  

• We told you that tennis players were the next content creators! New proof? Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion, is launching a podcast called Sincerely, Sloane. You see, when you read TSS, you cannot miss a trend 🙂 #HumbleBrag. “We're peeling back the layers to share real stories, laughs, and life-changing moments that will inspire those to be their best self. Join us as we go beyond the surface with the brightest stars in sports, entertainment, and beyond”, says the statement. The first episode drops on May 13.
  

• This new marketplace says women only. “Fan intelligence company Sports Innovation Lab has teamed up with media agency Trailblazing Sports Group to create the Trailblazing Marketplace, which gives media buyers access to women’s sports inventory across sports and platforms." How is the inventory set up? “The inventory is sorted based on three categories: culture-driven, athlete-driven, and community-driven.
  

  

  Iga Swiatek, cover girl

  
  

• Iga Swiatek is really into her glam era and we love that journey for her. The World No. 1 graces the cover of Elle Poland, and it again seems she’s embracing this new part of her job way more than many might have thought. As it showed when she was asked about it in Rome: “I really had fun. I would say posing wasn't easy at the beginning. I had a coach onset that kind of showed me what to do. Then it got easy because we're kind of used to repeating movements, even on court. At the beginning, for sure I felt rusty, but I felt really confident and taken care of. When you're living your normal life and you're being just yourself, it's sometimes nice to feel so glamorous. It's also good to treat yourself that way. So it was really great.” Treat yourself, Iga, you’ve deserved it!

LATEST NEWS 
Murray gives it a shot, while USTA has to pay $9M in sexual assault case

• Andy Murray is to try Swiss clay before the French one. Despite severely injuring an ankle in Miami, the former World No.1 isn’t taking no for an answer when it comes to his clay season. He has taken a wild card for the Geneva Open, the week before Roland-Garros where he hasn’t played since 2020. As he seems to be planning to retire at the end of the year, it makes sense for Murray to want to play one last time in Paris. Yet he needs to test that foot before.
  

• Jack Draper, only 22, revealed to The Guardian that he still nearly quit tennis. He had just cracked the Top 40 but still wasn’t sure if he wanted to keep playing after years of battling a crazy amount of injuries. “I had this chronic hip thing and I thought of stopping again. ‘Am I going to be able to really do this?’ I really contemplated what my life would be if I didn’t have tennis, honestly. Since that moment, I’ve really realised what I want again and realised that this is something that I’m capable of achieving.” It’s one thing for a player to hear everybody saying he can be one of the best ones, but totally another for that player to believe it and to commit despite the struggles. In Rome, the British player is also making an experiment by bringing former player Wayne Ferreira into the team alongside his coach James Trotman.
  

• It’s not rare to see a player bring a second coach to his team, but it’s not that often that two coaches decide to team up from the start. Yet, it is what Sam Sumyk, who famously coached the likes of Victoria Azarenka and Garbine Muguruza in the past) and Xavier Le Gall have decided to try.
  

• Kylie McKenzie, a 25-year-old player, sued the USTA in 2022 for failing to protect her from being sexually assaulted by a coach when she was 19 and he was 34 at its Florida tennis center. And now she won: a federal jury ordered the USTA to pay $9M.

EDITOR’S PICKS 

LISTEN TO: “I don’t feel like my body is 23 years old". Bianca Andreescu is getting ready to finally start her 2024 season and she gave a great interview about her struggles on Match Point Canada.

IN THE NECK OF TIME: The WSJ has a list of the best travel pillows, like talk about something that can make or break that flight journey! Follow the experts, maybe?

TAKE A SELFISH (OR TWO): Bringing back the last part of the favorite products that you might have missed in the earlier editions:

• Who you gonna call? More often than not, it’s that Cicalfate cream from Avène. When nothing else will soothe that skin of yours? Give it a shot. Like, for real.

• It’s spring and clay season, so if you’re lucky you’re about to spend a lot of hours outside sliding on the red. But enjoying the red clay doesn’t mean wanting to match the color so please as usual: put that sunscreen on. My favorite one, especially for reactive skin? This Caudalie fluid (not cream, fluid, it makes a major difference) is a wonder. My other Caudalie go-to? The Vinosource-Hydra line, their serum to treat dark spots, the resveratrol-lift serum and their salicylic serum.

• Nearly everything from La Roche-Posay is great for those of us who cannot put many things on our skin. But recently I’ve fallen in love with that Toleriane Dermallergo fluid moisturiser. I keep it for the night routine, it’s like a veil of comfort.

• Also, the basis if you want to always keep an eye on that suitcase while you travel.

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