Carlos Alcaraz’s injury nightmare has moved to the next level after it was confirmed he will not only miss next month’s Rome Masters, but will he will also be absent from the second Grand Slam of the year at Roland Garros.
Confirmation that Alcaraz will not defend the French Open title he won in such spectacular fashion in the final against Jannik Sinner last year did not come as a surprise, as there was a widespread belief that the wrist injury he sustained while playing at the Barcelona Open would rule him out for an extended period.
While Alcaraz has not confirmed how long he will be out for, missing a Grand Slam where he is the defending champion is a huge blow for the 22-year-old, who released the news via his social media channels.
“After the results of the tests carried out today, we have decided that the most prudent thing is to be cautious and not participate in Rome and Roland Garros, while we wait to assess the evolution to decide when we will return to the court,” he stated.
“It’s a complicated moment for me, but I’m sure we’ll come out stronger from here.”
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With Wimbledon on the calendar just three weeks after Roland Garros, there has to be a chance that Alcaraz will be forced out of that tournament as well, with the rankings implication of his injury lay-off set to have a huge impact.
He will not be able to defend the 1,000 ranking points he won after beating Sinner in last year’s Rome Masters final and the 2,000 points he collected at Roland Garros.
He also has lot of points to defend at Wimbledon after reaching the final in that tournament last year and the comments he used in his statement confirming he was out of Rome and French Open suggests he doesn’t know when he will return.
Even if he made a swift return after Wimbledon, Alcaraz could be as much as 6,000 points behind his big rival Sinner in the rankings if the Italian cashes in on his rival’s absence to go on a trophy collecting spree.
Alcaraz may also be in danger of sliding out of the top two of the ATP Rankings, with the chasing pack now set to be presented with a big chance to chase down the seven-time Grand Slam champion, who was a long way ahead of his big rivals in the world No 1 spot after he won the Australian Open in January.
It appears Alcaraz was left with little option other than to pull out of Roland Garros and former British No 1 Greg Rusedski suggests we all need to see the bigger picture for the 22-year-old.
“He needs to look at the long-term picture and say I’ve got a 10-year career,” said Rusedski on the latest episode of his podcast.
“He can’t afford to have a wrist injury that is serious. Look at Juan Martin del Potro, one of the greats of our game. He never solved his wrist problem and never came back to the player he once was,”
“So take your time, make sure it’s 100 per-cent ready to go. Don’t rush it back. So I don’t think he really overall cares about the ranking points. It’s about health is your wealth.
“The four majors are what really define you as a great of the game. He’s already won seven. He’s only three away from 10 already at such a young age, which is incredible.
“I heard there’s rumors in Monte Carlo in the finals he wasn’t feeling his best with the wrist. Maybe had a little niggle there and sometimes he pushed through and that’s normal to have niggles, aches, pains in certain areas.
“He did the right thing to pull out of Barcelona with the injury and if I look at this picture, even if he misses the French, it’s not such a big deal.”
Rusedski went on to compare the scheduling plan being followed by world No 1 Jannik Sinner and his great rival Alcaraz.
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Sinner looks to take breaks between events, while Alcaraz played back-to-back tournaments in Monte Carlo and Barcelona before picking up his injury.
“You look at Jannik Sinner and this guy has got great scheduling,” he added. “His preparations are always perfect. He’s always the first one to the tournament and when he plays he’s ready to go. He’s had very few injuries. He manages his body well but also you got two different personalities.
“You look at Carlos, he loves to have a good time. He likes to go out and partying. He likes to go on his boat.
“Sinner’s more relaxed, more focused on the tennis, more serious about his recuperation. One of the key ingredients is sleep, relaxation, and time away. And that’s what the best players balance out so well. And if you can’t do that, then you get these niggles, these pains, and these injuries, and it’s finding that balance.”
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