"It was very easy to do this with him," Couacaud talks about his sparring experience with Alcaraz before the Roland-Garros final
Last Sunday, Carlos Alcaraz won a legendary final at Roland-Garros against Jannik Sinner. Trailing two sets to love and after saving three match points, the world number 2 eventually managed to retain his title in a nail-biting finish (4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6 in 5h29) and following the longest final in Roland-Garros history.
Before the final, the Spaniard trained with French player Enzo Couacaud, who served as a sparring partner before the final showdown against his Italian rival. For Eurosport, the world number 454 reflected on this experience in recent hours.
"Someone at the desk that I know well called me and said: 'Carlos wants a warm-up, are you up for it?' Obviously, when it is players like this, it's hard to refuse. It went well.
Juan Carlos Ferrero (Carlos Alcaraz's coach) asked me a bit about what I was doing because he hadn't seen me in the draw and had understood that I wasn't playing the tournament. So, we discussed a bit about my tennis situation, let's say.
Carlos is someone very easy-going. He doesn't have big demands on the court. So, it was very easy to do this with him. We got along well. He did one or two sessions, two sessions maybe that come to mind, where he was hitting all around.
And there wasn't a single moment when he lost his head or questioned what he was doing. You could really feel that he was very confident and ready. I'll cherish the good moments shared with someone very nice," assured Couacaud.
