We’re talking about practice! They’ll be hoping to stand on opposite sides of the net in a week’s time in Monte Carlo, but for now, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic kicked off the clay-court season with a training session together on Day 1 of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.
Both men are making highly anticipated apperances at the first ATP Masters 1000 event of the sping clay-court season. Two-time Monte Carlo champion Djokovic, who was beaten by Casper Ruud in the semifinals last year, returns to the match court after falling just short of winning his 100th career singles title at the Miami Open, where he was upset in the final in a pair of tiebreaks by Czech teenager Jakub Mensik. Alcaraz, meanwhile, is making only his second apperance; after losing his opening match to Sebastian Korda in 2022, he withdrew from the 2023 and 2024 events with various injuries.
But one familir face isn’t at the tournament, as made apparent by Alcaraz and Djokovic’s joint practice, where the two played points and shared spirited conversation: Djokovic’s brother Marko is standing in as coach this week, rather than Andy Murray.
The two-time Monte Carlo champion, who said he found “joy” in his Miami performance, and that it “gives [him] more inspiration to keep going,” added in his pre-tournament interview that it was never in the plans for Murray, who started coaching Djokovic at the start of the year, to accompany him to the event. The Scot will re-join him in Madrid.
“I was thinking about who I wanted anyone apart from my fitness coach and physio and my brother Marko was able to join me so that helps me on a different level emotionally,” he said, according to the ATP website. “Have some time with my brother and spend some time with him on the road.”
Alcaraz, seeded No. 2, and No. 3 seed Djokovic were drawn in opposite halves at the first clay-court Masters 1000 event of the spring. The Spaniard will face the winner of the first-round match between wild card Fabio Fognini and Francisco Cerundolo, while Djokovic will face either wild card Stan Wawrinka or Alejandro Tabilo—the latter of whom defeated him last year in Rome.
