Alcaraz: "I have the best physio in the world, thanks to him I have been able to play"
Words of affection from the man from Murcia towards Juanjo Moreno, the key man in these last 48 hours so that he could step onto the court to play against Bergs.
Carlos Alcaraz smiles, that's the news. He does so for several reasons. The most important of all is his state of health, that of his left ankle, the one that almost knocked him out of the ATP 500 in Tokyo 2025. The injury suffered in his debut against Sebastián Báez did not prevent him from finishing that match, even winning it comfortably, but the story of this Saturday could have been very different. Thankfully, the Murcian is surrounded by an outstanding team where each person plays an extraordinary role in achieving the best possible performance on the court.
In this case, Juanjo Moreno is the figure who has managed to make the world number one's ankle respond perfectly in the round of 16 of the Japanese tournament. In his duel against Zizou Bergs, beyond the level of the Belgian, who was capable of breaking his serve several times, the most important thing was that at no time did we hear any news about the ankle, pain, or any other external aspect to the game. A triumph that was cooked off the court to then solidify on it. In statements to the Tennis TV microphones, we could hear Carlitos sincerely thank his teammate.
"Honestly, it has been tough, for me it has been very important to have the day I had yesterday, having an extra day to recover from my ankle as best as I could. I've said it in the past and I say it again now: I have the best physio in the world (laughs). I trust him 100%, and that's also very important when something like this happens. That he has been with me in this tournament has been a key factor, the way he has treated the injury in these last hours is phenomenal, thanks to him I have been able to play," commented the one from El Palmar, very happy with his performance.
NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT
Still, Carlos wanted to elaborate a bit more in his response, acknowledging that not everything had been as easy as the score indicates: 6-4, 6-3. An hour and twenty minutes on the clock that served him to warm up, test himself, advance to the quarterfinals, and, even though no one saw it, also overcome his own fears with the weakest area of his current body. Of course, he thought about the ankle, indeed many times he was extremely careful, until the dynamics of the match made him forget about everything else and go straight for the goal.
"In the match, I felt a certain normality when competing, although I recognize that there were several moments where I was a little worried, in some movements on the court, I felt some distress about how the ankle would respond to the demands of a match like this. Overall, looking at everything in perspective, I can say it's been a great match on my part, a performance I'm happy with. I played at a good level of tennis even while, in many moments, dealing with the state of my ankle," emphasized the Murcian, who will face Brandon Nakashima tomorrow.
This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Alcaraz: “Tengo el mejor fisio del mundo, gracias a él he podido jugar”