Carlos Alcaraz Remains Blunt About Jannik Sinner and the Other Injuries

Another warning from Carlos Alcaraz following his victory at the U.S. Open against American Tommy Paul, which allowed him to reach the quarterfinals of the New York Grand Slam after being sidelined for over four months. The Spanish champion highlighted the physical issues plaguing top tennis players and confirmed that he will adjust his schedule starting next season.

“I really want my career to last for the next 10 or 15 years, so I want to take care of my mental and physical health. I’ll take the opportunity to rest whenever I can. Tennis can be unpredictable—you never know how many matches you’ll win, or whether tournaments will last just one match or seven. It will depend on how I feel physically and mentally, and whether I’ll need long breaks at the beginning, middle, or end of the year.”

Alcaraz cited the cases of Jannik Sinner, Jack Draper, Joao Fonseca, and others as examples: “We’re seeing a lot of players get injured or feel sick during matches. If nothing is done about it, we’ll see even more withdrawals in the future. I’ll have to take at least one or two months off, skipping some tournaments, because it’s impossible to play them all. If we want to play until we’re 34, 35, or 36, we’ll all have to skip some tournaments, and that’s something the Tour needs to take into consideration.”

Aryna Sabalenka also joined the chorus of protest, expressing an equally clear stance: “I’d like to see changes to the schedule and the elimination of mandatory tournaments so players can decide what’s best for their health. It’s become extremely intense. Especially when you play at Carlos’s level, with such consistency, it’s very hard on the body. If they don’t reduce the number of mandatory tournaments, we’ll have to sacrifice points, our ranking, or something else to protect our bodies.”