"Alcaraz stronger than Nadal? Impossible" - Richard Gasquet

Richard Gasquet [inset] reckons Carlos Alcaraz is no match to the Mallorcan's stature in Paris.

Richard Gasquet believes Carlos Alcaraz cannot be compared to Rafael Nadal by any stretch of the imagination, especially not at the French Open.

Alcaraz is being discussed by many fans and experts as one of the favorites for the 2022 French Open title, with some even placing the teenager above Nadal on that list.

This was largely due to the fact that Alcaraz entered the Slam in sublime form, having won the Barcelona Open and Madrid Masters back-to-back. The southpaw, on the other hand, played only five matches in the build-up to the Parisian Slam as a rib fracture kept him on the sidelines for over a month.

When asked for his two cents on the comparison between Alcaraz and his more illustrious compatriot by RMCSport, Richard Gasquet threw his weight entirely behind the Mallorcan. Gasquet highlighted Nadal's mind-boggling record at Roland Garros to stress how comparisons between the two are far-fetched despite Alcaraz being heavily talented.

"Alcaraz stronger than Nadal? Impossible. At his age, Nadal had already won Roland-Garros twice," Gasquet said. "That won't happen again. He is already extremely strong, that's for sure! But when you win 13 times there is not even a comparison possible."

It is pertinent to note that the 13-time Roland Garros winner had won only one French Open title when he was 19, which is Alcaraz's present age. The Mallorcan won his second Major in Paris a week after turning 20.

🎾 Gasquet : "Alcaraz plus fort que Nadal ? Impossible. À son âge, Nadal avait déjà gagné deux fois Roland-Garros. Ça n’arrivera plus. Il est déjà extrêmement fort, c’est clair ! Mais quand tu gagnes 13 fois Roland-Garros, il n’y a même pas de comparaison possible."

"I feel a lot of love from the people here" - Rafael Nadal

Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal played Frenchman Corentin Moutet in his second-round match at the French Open on Wednesday. Although the soon-to-be 36-year-old has been a strong crowd favorite in Paris for years, Moutet enjoyed a good chunk of support given his nationality.

When asked to reveal his methods of blocking out crowd support towards Moutet, the 21-time Major champion explained that he felt the crowd was not being partisan towards the home favorite.

"I think the crowd was very nice with me too, no? I don't think, I, I really didn't feel the crowd against me at all. I think it was a 50/50 and it was supporting a good tennis," said the Spaniard.

He maintained that he has always enjoyed "good support" in Paris and asserted that he feels appreciated in this part of the world.

"No, I always enjoy a good support here in Paris, I think the people here knows how special is this place for me and how important and how much respect I always had for Roland Garros and I think they appreciate all the things that I did in this event, so I feel a lot of love from the people here," he said.