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Jay Clarke, a long-time Chelsea fan, is understandably disappointed at the way the Blues' 2022-23 season is unfolding. However, the Brit remains hopeful for the future, clinging on to the belief that his London side could get out of their recent slump soon.
Chelsea are currently languishing in 10th spot in the Premier League, well outside the qualification spots for Europe next year. Having qualified into the knockouts of the UEFA Champions league, the team lost 1-0 away from home to Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Round-of-16 clash on Thursday.
With a change in ownership and a new manager at the helm, the London-based club are in the middle of an important transition period, one that has created doubt in the middle of many a fan.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda during his time at the ATP Challenger event in Chennai, World No. 313 Jay Clarke admitted that he has basically given up on Chelsea's season, to the point that he is not even watching their matches on television anymore. At the same time, he was confident in the pedigree of the team, remarking that their finances were solid enough to help them find their way back.
"Oh that's right. I don't watch anymore, I switched it off. I prefer watching basketball [now]. But it's tough traveling, like when I'm here, you know, the time difference is so tough to watch the games," Clarke said. "But they'll get it back. You know, all those teams, their pedigree is so good and also they've got such good finances behind them."
The 24-year-old went on to put his trust in the youth talent present in the squad at the moment, adding that it would be nice to see some of them get more chances in what matches remain during the rest of the season.
"Yeah, yeah, for sure [I'm hopeful for the next seasons]. You know, there's so much talent in the youth squad as well," Jay Clarke said. "Hopefully, those guys will get a chance at the end of this season as well."
Jay Clarke reaches quarterfinals of Chennai Open
Meanwhile, Jay Clarke's own fortunes at the 2023 Chennai Open were much better, as he reached the quarterfinals of the ATP Challenger event with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Dimitar Kuzmanov. The Brit admitted that he was "really happy" to get through the Bulgarian, hailing him as a great player who did not give any easy points.
“It was a very tough match, you know, [Kuzmanov] is a great player. We'd played once before, and he beat me 7-6 in the third time. I knew it would be tough today. He makes you play really good tennis to beat him," Jay Clarke said. "He doesn't give much away, so yeah, I'm really happy to come through that."
In the next round, Clarke will lock horns with home hope Sumit Nagal, who beat Jason Jung 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 in the second round.
