Botic van de Zandschulp doubted his participation in Roland Garros due to physical discomfort. The 29-year-old Dutchman was defeated in the first round against the American Emilio Nava and doesn’t know when he will be fit again.
“I didn’t expect much anyway,” says Van de Zandschulp after the match, including to NU.nl. Leading up to Roland Garros, the Veenendaler struggled with a groin injury, but it didn’t stop there.
“I also had a shoulder injury and now a stress fracture in my right bicep,” continues Van de Zandschulp. “I only really moved on the court for the first time on Monday.”
Yet, Van de Zandschulp chose to travel to Paris. “I did have doubts about it, though. If it wasn’t a Grand Slam, I wouldn’t have played here. I would have skipped another tournament.”
Even just before the match, the world number 89 still doubted his participation in the first round of the clay tournament. Yet, he stepped onto the court with a sleeve around his right arm.
“It was still questionable whether I would play here today, but I did it anyway,” says Van de Zandschulp. “If I had won that second set, I might have even reached the second round.”
Despite his strong comeback in the second set, the number three of the Netherlands did not manage to win a set. “Maybe it was all too tight this week,” Van de Zandschulp admits.
“Actually, resting is the only thing that helps, so that’s what I’m going to do now. I don’t know what my upcoming weeks will look like yet,” says Van de Zandschulp, who still earned 78,000 euros with his participation in Roland Garros.