Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev have both downplayed the impact of Carlos Alcaraz’s absence at the 2026 French Open, albeit for different reasons. Despite his status as the two-time defending champion, Alcaraz was forced to pull out of Roland Garros due to a wrist injury he sustained at the Barcelona Open. The same issue has also ruled the Spaniard out of the upcoming grass swing, including the Wimbledon Championships.
Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev React to Carlos Alcaraz Missing the French Open
During his pre-tournament press conference, Djokovic made it clear that Alcaraz’s absence did not affect his approach to the French Open, emphasizing that his primary concern remained his own fitness.
“Well, he’s a two-time defending champion of Roland Garros. It’s a big blow for the tournament not to have him. Whether that changes my approach to this tournament, I don’t think it does significantly change to be honest because I’ve been through challenging times with my body in the last six to eight months. So that was my primary focus or concern, not really thinking about whether I have better chances or not with Carlos,” he said.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion added that when he is physically fit, he backs himself to contend for the title, citing his impressive run at the 2026 Australian Open, during which he defeated Jannik Sinner before falling short against Alcaraz in the final.
“Because I feel like if I’m healthy and I’m able to maintain that level of freshness throughout the tournament that obviously will not be the same at the beginning like it is towards the end of the tournament, but if I’m able to somehow maintain that level of freshness and progress, then I feel like I have always a very good chance. And I’ve proven that in Australia this year where I was close to win another slam. So, I always have that belief in me when I’m on the court,” he added.
Medvedev also insisted that the world No. 2’s absence made little difference to him, though for a contrasting reason. He highlighted his struggles at Roland Garros, pointing out that he wouldn’t have had to worry about facing Alcaraz unless he managed to put together a deep run.
“I’ll be honest, for me it doesn’t make a difference because it’s Roland Garros, I’ve never been in the semis here. I take it a match at a time. Of course, if I’m in semis and I play Jannik and maybe you know that Carlos isn’t there on the other side, you’re like ‘Okay maybe it’s kind of an easier challenge to try to win the whole thing.’ But at the moment we’re not there. I’m playing my first round, which I probably lost 6 times at Roland Garros so I just want to do my best and try to go further through the draw,” Medvedev said.
Nevertheless, Medvedev wished a speedy return for the 23-year-old, saying that he was missed both on the court and in the locker room.
“But in general I would say I hope he comes back fast. We know he’s not playing Wimbledon so I hope he comes back as fast as possible with what he has, I’m not sure what he has. Because we love to see him both in the locker room and on court as well,” he added.
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No. 3 seed Novak Djokovic will resume his hunt for his 25th Grand Slam title against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round of the French Open, while No. 6 seed Daniil Medvedev will begin his campaign against Adam Walton.
