Carlos Alcaraz, situation worsens: worrying rumors about Jannik Sinner’s rival
The wrist injury that forced Carlos Alcaraz to withdraw from the Barcelona tournament is likely to severely affect the season of the Murcia outfielder, who just lost his ATP number one ranking spot, overtaken by Jannik Sinner in Monte Carlo. Madrid may not be the only tournament the Spanish champion will be forced to miss to recover from his physical problem.
If the injury is not resolved quickly, the backlash on the ATP ranking is likely to be severe, several Spanish media outlets report. Alcaraz had arrived in Barcelona with a real chance of regaining the world number one ranking and instead in a few days the situation was completely reversed, with the Murcian being forced to forfeit giving the Azzurro the chance to stretch in Madrid.
But that’s not all: the situation risks getting even worse, according to Puntodebreak. Wrist injuries are among the most insidious because it is a very sensitive area. Alcaraz and his team will have to be absolutely certain of recovery before returning to the court, to avoid ruinous relapses. The problem is that time is running out: as of Monday, the Spaniard will find himself 390 points behind Sinner and, over the next few weeks, he will have to defend a huge amount of points at the Internazionali d’Italia in Rome el Roland Garros.
Alcaraz risks losing up to 3,000 ATP points in the next month. Last year he had beaten Sinner in the final in Rome, and the same happened at Roland Garros at the end of an epic final. But beyond the points, the biggest concern is about Alcaraz’s physical condition: in Spain they are worried about the management of the Murcia player, who instead of resting like Sinner after Monaco decided to play in Barcelona after just 48 hours. A gamble that led his body to say enough and force him to stop.
Whatever happens, Carlos Alcaraz will most likely arrive at Roland Garros not at 100%: in the best scenario, he will manage to play the Rome Masters 1000 but with great caution, just to prepare for Paris. But there is also the mental factor to consider in a return from such a delicate injury. All this is always assuming that he will be able to play at least one of the two remaining tournaments on clay. If he is not 100 percent, it is very likely that he will skip Rome and aim everything on Roland Garros, his main short-term goal.
