2023-06-07 07:00:00
PARIS (Special Envoy).- There are events that leave their mark, that empower or demolish, that embolden or demoralize; that mark a before and after. There are achievements, in sport, that alter the axis, that shake, that become a north. At the age of 23, Tomás Martín Etcheverry seems to have reached the state of nirvana. Came to Roland Garros, the second major of the season, his favorite tournament, with just one victory in Grand Slams (in Australia, last January). But hammering, competing seriously, prolonging his maturity on the court and not allowing himself to be intimidated by the environment, the man from La Plata rode without losing sets until the quarterfinals. But it goes for more, of course. This Wednesday, in the third round of the Philippe-Chatrier, one of the most artistic stadiums in the world, he will face the German Alexander Zverev, current 27th, former 2nd and in search of his optimal version after the obstacles he suffered since last year when, here in Paris, he suffered a severe ankle ligament injury in the semifinals with Rafael Nadal.
Etcheverry, 1.96 meters tall and a fan of Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata, is the only one not seeded among the best eight rackets of the French Open. Although this year, the highlight of his career, he has already played two finals on the circuit (in Santiago de Chile and Houston), the large international tennis public began to know him at the Bois de Boulogne. The foreign press also began to pay more attention to him, to pay more attention to him, to try to find out the behind (his) story of him. After the victory on Monday night against the Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka, Etcheverry had dinner at the club, participated in the press conference, his team tried to isolate him a bit from the phone and he was only able to go to bed around two in the morning on Tuesday. . After rest and breakfast, he returned to Roland Garros and, from 1:30 p.m., he trained on court 16, the last court of the complex, intimate, surrounded by vegetation, to which the general public has no access. His sparring partner was the Frenchman Charles Bertimon, a 23-year-old player who competes in the American university league. “Good luck in your next game”, greeted the European to the Argentine after the test.
Etcheverry, who will minimally rise to 31st place after Roland Garros (eighteen more places) and with a guaranteed prize of 400,000 euros (the tournament takes 30% of the total in taxes), positioned himself in a different hierarchical status with his action on the clay French. The level of exposure achieved here is incalculable. THE NATION accompanied him through the corridors of the Philippe-Chatrier to the terrace, where France Televisions He has set up a TV set. Made up and with a headset from which questions and comments were translated into French, Etcheverry sat at a discussion table among which were, among others, the Belgian Justine Henin (winner of seven Grand Slams and No. 1 in 2003). and the former French doubles player Michael Llodra.
After the talk with one of the channels that broadcast the tournament and while Novak Djokovic and Karen Khachanov played a few meters below, Etcheverry spoke with THE NATION. “Roland Garros quarterfinals… I swear I say it and I don’t believe it. I swear. But it fills me with pride because we are really working so hard to achieve this. It’s no coincidence, ”says the Argentine, the day before the big game in which he will seek to reach the semifinals.
-What is your first memory of Roland Garros?
-The final between Gaudio and Coria, in 2004. I was six years old, I think; and I remember seeing her in my house. What’s more: I saw the game many more times. Every once in a while I liked to look for it. And from that, when I became more and more a fan of tennis, Roland Garros was the tournament that I watched the most on television. Even when I was nine years old, I named my puppy Roland Garros. It was my dream… my dream since I was a kid was always to win Roland Garros. And be top ten too. The puppy, which is a poodle, is fifteen years old, he’s old, he took it. He walks well, he is a little deaf, but he is fine.
-When did you enter the Roland Garros venue for the first time?
-Directly in 2016, when I played in the juniors championship, which I lost to (Alex) De Miñaur in the first round. That was the first time I stepped foot in Roland Garros and from there I began to get to know everything: the facilities, what it meant to play the tournament, its tradition. All. Then I came back five years later, in 2021: I played qualifying and I couldn’t pass it. And last year I made my main draw debut against (Miomir) Kecmanovic.
-That first time, as a junior, you were angry because you arrived injured, right?
-Yes, the week before competing I was playing a tournament in Italy, at Bonfiglio, and playing against a Brazilian, I took a drop shot, my foot got stuck with the strapping and I sprained very badly, very badly. To this day I still wear that protector on my right ankle. What’s more: it took me a long time to recover. Until then I did not bandage myself and I began to do so from that moment. I got to Roland Garros as best I could and it was not the debut I was expecting, clearly, because I lost quickly. And last year, after losing to Kecmanovic, I left helplessly. I felt that I was still far from level. I got frustrated. I lost in three sets, calm down. It was far from the level that I am showing now.
-Is it true that as a boy you had too many cabals?
-Yes it’s true. I have always had routines or cabals that allowed me to focus. In all the games he did the same (smiles). You could tell that he was quite obsessive. Of the style of eating every day at the same table in the same restaurant and even on the same plate. I have done it several times, but I remember above all in a National tournament in Córdoba, in which I won: we arrived on the first day with my coach, who was Gustavo Merbilhaa, and we did not change our minds. We ate in the same place and everyone ate the same dish. It’s not that only I did it, but that it involved everyone (he laughs).
-You went viral for a poster in which you compare your ranking points with those of Djokovic. How did it come about?
-That arose in 2016, in the first ATP point that I took, in Ecuador. At that time I was training with Luciano Cabeiro and he told me: ‘Let’s do this, listen to me’. He already knew that Djokovic was always my idol, along with Juan Martín (del Potro), so we decided to do it as a joke. He took the photo of me and it went viral; it was funny. And last year when I broke into the top 100 for the first time, I was like, ‘Let’s do it again.’ Djokovic was still number one, so many years later. He went viral again. And until the other day, recently, when I played against him in Rome, it was very nice to have him face to face. We exchanged a few words. He is a great person who helps tennis players a lot, who does a lot for our sport. Having him in front of me was another dream.
-You are living the best year of your life. What did you change, what did you incorporate?
-Playing at this level raises your category, because sharing training and playing all the time with these players makes you better. This year I changed several technical and strategic issues, ways of seeing the game, how to try to close the point more, play intelligently, not despair. Walter (Grinovero, his coach since last July) helped me a lot in that. We have incorporated things and continue to do so.
-Are you aware of what was generated this week among lovers of Argentine tennis due to your work and that of Fran Cerúndolo?
-I don’t think so. I try to be disconnected because otherwise… Later I will enjoy, because I don’t want to lose focus on the opportunity I have to go out on the field with Zverev.
-How do you imagine the game?
-Usually we analyze and talk about the strategies in the nights before the games, but I feel very confident in myself. I am ready and prepared to give battle. I feel very confident. He is a great player, an elite athlete. I hope that the game goes my way and that I can continue to show the tennis that I am having.
-You look very serious on the court, focused, well planted. Do the nerves go inside?
-Yes, but I always tried to be a calm player and focused on the game beyond the nerves. I try not to prove anything. But luckily here at Roland Garros I am facing the matches very well. They are not generating a lot of nerves or extra pressure on me. I am not going from what needs to be done, from the strategy. And I hope to continue like this. It is a dream tournament, but it is not over yet.
1686121563
#Tomás #Etcheverry #NACION #Roland #Garros #Argentine #moment #great #challenge #life