Carlos Alcaraz pain-free heading into French Open but concerned

Carlos Alcaraz is no longer feeling pain in his forearm after an injury cut short his clay-court swing, but the two-time Grand Slam champion said he is still apprehensive about hitting balls with full intensity at the French Open.

Alcaraz, 21, withdrew from the Monte Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open because of the injury, and after he attempted to retain his title in Madrid but lost in the quarterfinals, he skipped the Italian Open.

“I’m feeling better. Every practice that I have done here, at home, it was pretty good. I’m feeling better and better,” Alcaraz told reporters Friday. “At least I can practice, hit balls without pain. That’s a really good point for me. I’m excited to play my first match here in Roland Garros.

“I’m still thinking about it when I’m hitting forehands. Probably I’m going to say I’m a little bit scared about hitting every forehand at 100% [intensity].”

The world No. 4 has played only four matches on clay this season.

“Honestly, I come here to this tournament with not too many matches, not as much matches as I wanted, but I’m focusing on the practice,” he said. “I’m practicing well. I’m getting rhythm. I’m getting confidence on the practice that I think is really important, and I think I don’t need too many matches to get to my 100%.”

Asked about his injury, the Spaniard smiled and said he did not know exactly what went wrong with his arm.

“I just focus to do the things that the doctors and my team told me that I have to do. That’s it,” he said. “What I remember is they told me that this is not going to be serious, it’s not going to take too much time. I’m not feeling any pain in the practices when I step on the court.”

Also, Jannik Sinner, who could become the new world No. 1 over the next fortnight, said his hip injury has recovered in time for the French Open but that his preparation has not been ideal.

The Australian Open champion had said he would not risk his long-term fitness by playing at Roland Garros unless he was fully recovered but will take his place in the draw.

“I’m not concerned anymore about my hip. The last tests we made, they were very positive. That’s why I’m here,” Sinner said Friday. “I said I come only here if the hip, it’s in a good shape. The general physical shape is not perfect. I didn’t play tennis for nearly three weeks, which is quite a lot before a Grand Slam. But look, I’ll try to play day by day.

“This is a little bit different approach of a tournament than it…