The details behind Carlos Alcaraz’s wrist injury have been kept private by the world No 2 and his team, but there are suggestions that his problem could affect his long-term career unless he addresses it now.
Alcaraz was forced to pull out of the Barcelona Open earlier this month after admitting he ‘felt something go’ in his wrist, with his swift decision to confirm he will miss the rest of the clay court season and will not defend his French Open title, highlighting the severity of the issue.
There are also suggestions in Spain that his hopes of playing at Wimbledon are in doubt, with claims that he is suffering from tenosynovitis.
This is an injury Alcaraz’s fellow Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal suffered with in his time at the top, with the receptive nature of tennis putting a big strain on the wrist.
The challenge with this issue is that it is not easy to solve and can flare up again if an athlete continues to play when the tendon is already inflamed.
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A period of rest and limited use of the affected area is the best course of treatment, as continuing to play could risk tearing the tendon and that would be a serious injury for Alcaraz to overcome.
Plenty of big names in tennis have been offering words of advice for Alcaraz as he ponders his next move, with former British No 1 Greg Rusedski among those urging the 22-year-old to look at the bigger picture as he considers whether to try and get back on court for the grass court season.
“He’s already won seven majors at such a young age. He has all four Slams already. It’s just incredible what he’s done,” said Rusedski on his podcast.
“This is where the team has managed him correctly, you know, just not putting an expectation, any pressure. He wants to try to be ready for Wimbledon. You know, he lost that tough final last year to [Jannik] Sinner.
“It is a little bit disconcerting because he’s gonna miss Paris, that’s an extra two weeks away, which is a total of four and a half weeks off right now with the injury.
“Is he gonna have enough time three weeks afterwards to get ready for the Wimbledon Championship? Hopefully he will be back for the grass court season, but this puts a lot of things in doubt.
“Fingers crossed by about the second week of Paris, he’s already into his stride. Also, when you’re playing on clay, there are long, drawn out rallies on the grass court. It’s a little bit shorter. It’s a little bit sharper as well.
“It just depends on what the conditions are going to be like in summer. If it’s hot, the ball goes through the air quickly. If it’s going to be a little cooler, it goes a little slower. So Carlos will only come back when he’s 100 % fit and ready to go. And let’s hope.
“He needs to look at the bigger picture. He has a long career ahead of him and he can’t afford to have a wrist problem now that could affect him as it did a player like Juan Martin del Potro, who was never the same after he had a wrist problem.”
Alcaraz may only be 22, but the decisions he takes over the next few weeks could be crucial to his entire career, with a wrist problem one of the big fears for all tennis players.
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