Alcaraz seen in cast
- Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from Madrid with wrist inflammation and has been photographed wearing a cast, raising fitness doubts. ( ) - The injury could keep him out of the Italian Open and potentially the French Open if recovery stalls. ( ) - Coaches and commentators are urging caution instead of rushing back, given Roland Garros is approaching. ( )
Carlos Alcaraz’s wrist injury now looks serious enough to threaten more than Madrid: he has been seen in a cast as the French Open nears. (atptour.com) (sports.yahoo.com) The ATP said Alcaraz withdrew from the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell after a test on his right wrist, then pulled out of the Mutua Madrid Open days later. At Madrid, the world No. 2 said he needed to “listen to my body” and avoid making the injury worse. (atptour.com 1) (atptour.com 2) Fresh concern came on April 20 at the Laureus World Sports Awards in Madrid, where Alcaraz appeared with his right wrist immobilized while collecting the World Sportsman of the Year award. Reuters and Associated Press photos from the event showed the brace clearly. (reutersconnect.com) (news4jax.com) A wrist cast does not by itself prove a long layoff, but it usually means rest and immobilization, not full tennis training. That matters in late April because the Italian Open in Rome starts in early May and Roland Garros begins on May 24. (sports.yahoo.com) (internazionalibnlditalia.com) (rolandgarros.com) Alcaraz said this week he was waiting on more tests and did not want to rush back. “I prefer to come back a bit later rather than rush,” he said at the Laureus event, adding that forcing his return could hurt him “enormously in the future.” (atptour.com) (olympics.bernama.com) The caution reflects the stakes of this clay swing. Alcaraz is the defending champion at Roland Garros, and missing Rome would leave him with little match play before Paris. (rolandgarros.com) (sports.yahoo.com) There is also a recent pattern of Alcaraz choosing recovery over short-term risk. In 2025, after withdrawing from Madrid with a leg injury, he said Rome was the hope but Roland Garros was the priority if timing got tight. (atptour.com) Commentators have echoed that approach. Tennis coverage this week has pointed to the cast as a sign that Rome is in doubt and argued that preserving his wrist for Paris is the safer call. (sports.yahoo.com) (tennismajors.com) The next real marker is not a photo but a practice court. Until Alcaraz is hitting again without the cast, every skipped session brings Rome closer and Paris into sharper doubt. (atptour.com) (internazionalibnlditalia.com)
