Aryna Sabalenka getting in the mood for clay in Stuttgart

Stuttgart: Aryna Sabalenka said her claycourt preparations are in full swing ahead of her Stuttgart opener and the world number two is hoping for plenty of action ahead of the French Open, which begins next month.

The Australian Open champion has endured a difficult time after the apparent suicide of her former boyfriend, Konstantin Koltsov, as she was gearing up to play in the Miami Open last month.

The 25-year-old Belarusian lost in the third round in Florida before switching her attention to clay with her sights on the year’s second Grand Slam in Paris starting on May 26.

Last year’s Roland Garros semi-finalist told reporters she started her clay preparations straight after Miami.

“Stuttgart is a good place to start the clay season,” she added.

“You’re slowly getting into this ‘clay mood’, sliding, playing long rallies. I like to play lots of tournaments before the Grand Slam, so I think it’s a good one to start with.” Sabalenka, who has finished runner-up in the previous three years at Stuttgart, meets good friend Paula Badosa on Wednesday in a rematch of the pair’s second-round Miami meeting.

Defending champion Iga Swiatek said she too is steadily making the switch to the slower surface, having guided Poland into the Billie Jean King Cup Finals last week.

“I felt today that I can do the transition pretty quickly,” said the top-ranked Swiatek, who will take on Elise Mertens or Tatjana Maria.

“I’m not expecting that I’m going to feel comfortable from my first match because you always need some matches to just gain confidence on any surface, even if you feel comfortable on it.”

Alcaraz unsure

World No 3 Carlos Alcaraz has cast doubt on his Madrid Open title defence later this month as the Spaniard nurses a right arm injury that has forced him to miss key tune-up events for the French Open.

The 20-year-old successfully defended his Indian Wells title last month and then reached the Miami Open quarter-finals before sustaining the injury in his first practise session for the Monte Carlo Masters.

The two-times Grand Slam champion was unable to play in Monaco and then had to pull out of the Barcelona Open.

“My feeling isn’t right, but it is what it is. Now I’m fully focused on recovery and I have a little more time,” Alcaraz told reporters in Barcelona on Monday, a day after he decided not to defend his title.

“My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain. I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself.

“I can’t say I’ll be 100 per cent in Madrid, but that’s my intention. We’ll train and do everything we can so that the feelings improve so I can play a match ... It’s also a very special tournament for me.” Should he be unable to recover in time for the April 24-May 5 Masters tournament in Madrid, Alcaraz could still get some claycourt action in ahead of the French Open by competing in Rome the following week.

The main draw at the year’s second Grand Slam at Roland Garros begins on May 26. Alcaraz reached the semi-finals last year.

No surgery for Murray

Andy Murray will not undergo surgery on the ankle he injured at the Miami Open last month but no timeline has been given for his return, the BBC reported on Monday.

The 36-year-old Scot rolled his ankle in the deciding set of his loss to Czech Tomas Machac in southern Florida and withdrew from this month’s Monte Carlo Masters and Munich Open.

“Latest update from Andy is that he is now out of the walking boot and will not be having surgery on his ankle,” a spokesperson for Murray was quoted as saying.

“His rehab is going well and he is hoping to start hitting again on court soon. As yet he doesn’t have a date yet for returning to competition.” Former world No 1 and three-times Grand Slam champion Murray, who had hip resurfacing surgery in 2019, previously said he did not plan to “play much past this summer” but hoped to compete at another Olympics.

Murray had also said he hoped to play at the French Open, which starts at Roland Garros on May 26.

Wimbledon, where Murray has twice been champion, begins on July 1 and the Paris Games get under way later that month.