Carlos Alcaraz has announced that he has withdrawn from both the Italian Open and the French Open, adding that he will ‘assess the progress’ of his wrist injury before returning to the tour.
The Spaniard first experienced wrist discomfort during his opening match at the Barcelona Open, which he won 6-4, 6-2 against Finn Otto Virtanen.
However, Alcaraz required a medical timeout towards the end of the first set, receiving treatment on the affected area.
While he managed to come through that match, he was forced to withdraw from the tournament the following day and later admitted in his press conference that the injury was ‘more serious’ than initially expected.
Alcaraz’s French Open withdrawal is the first Grand Slam missed by the Spaniard since the 2023 Australian Open, when he had just one Grand Slam.
“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 or Roland Garros, while we wait to assess the progress in order to decide when we will return to the court,” said Alcaraz during his withdrawal post on social media.
“It’s a complicated moment for me, but I’m sure we will come out of this stronger.”
Latest Tennis News
Alcaraz was victorious in both Rome and Paris 12 months ago, meaning he is set to drop 3,000 ranking points.
As a result, Sinner’s lead at the top of the rankings looks likely to grow further, particularly if he enjoys a strong campaign at the Madrid Open.
The Italian currently leads Alcaraz by 400 points and could extend that advantage by a further 1,000 points should he lift the title in the Spanish capital.
The Spaniard also had an outside chance to complete the Calendar Grand Slam, after having won his maiden Australian Open title in January.
Although he has not revealed a precise diagnosis for the wrist injury, Alcaraz made it clear in his statement that there is currently no fixed timeline for his return.
The priority, for now, appears to be recovery rather than rushing back to competition.
“It’s a more serious injury than we all expected, and I have to listen to my body so it doesn’t affect me in the future,” the Spaniard stated during his withdrawal press conference at the Barcelona Open.
“With great sadness, I have to return home and recover as quickly as possible for the upcoming tournaments.”
Alcaraz had been scheduled to compete at the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club from 15–21 June, before launching another Wimbledon campaign.
Should the six-time Grand Slam champion be unable to return in time for the grass-court swing, he would risk losing a further 1,800 ranking points.
Last season, he won the ATP 500 event (defeating Czech Jiri Lehecka) and reaching the final at SW19 last year, where he lost to Sinner in a four-set match.
The post Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Italian Open and French Open in major injury blow, comeback unclear appeared first on Tennis365.
Leave a Reply