Carlos Alcaraz, the world No. 2 and two-time defending French Open champion, has announced his withdrawal from Roland Garros with a right wrist injury., ensuring the year’s second Grand Slam will be missing some star power when it starts May 24 in Paris.
Alcaraz received treatment on his right wrist and forearm during a first-round win at the Barcelona Open, on April 14. His clay-court season ended a day later when he pulled out of that tournament, then withdrew from the Madrid Open, which started April 20.
Shortly after withdrawing, Alcaraz told reporters at the Laureus Awards in Madrid that he would not rush back from the injury for the sake of defending his French Open title, because it could harm his longterm prospects.
Alcaraz will also miss out on defending the Italian Open title he won last year, which this year starts May 6.
“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 and Roland Garros, while we wait to assess the evolution to decide when we will return to the court. It’s a complicated moment for me, but I’m sure we’ll come out stronger from here,” Alcaraz said in a statement on social media.
Alcaraz has some history with injury at this point in the tennis calendar. He missed last year’s Madrid Open because of an injury to his right adductor, and was returning from a muscle injury to his right forearm during the 2024 edition.
But missing Grand Slams is rare for the Spaniard. He has only missed one major since the start of 2021: The 2023 Australian Open, which he pulled out of with a right hamstring injury. In that same time span, he has collected seven Grand Slam titles.
In January, the 22-year-old became the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam when he won the Australian Open.
Alcaraz’s withdrawal paves the way for his rival, 24-year-old Jannik Sinner, to play some catch-up. The Italian, who has four Grand Slam titles to his name, is now the clear French Open front-runner.
Sinner also has plenty of motivation to win in Paris. The French Open is the only major title Sinner needs to complete the career Grand Slam, and he lost the final to Alcaraz in an instant classic last year despite holding three championship points.
But Sinner will have to fight off a hungry field of players looking to make the most of Alcaraz’s absence and break the duo’s streak on tennis’s biggest stages, in which they have shared the past nine Grand Slam titles.
Hungriest of all may be world No. 4 Novak Djokovic, for whom history is on the line whenever he competes at a Grand Slam. One more major title, and the 38-year-old from Serbia would be the first tennis player to win 25 singles majors, surpassing Margaret Court. He would also become the oldest man to win a Grand Slam title in the Open Era, which began in 1968.
Djokovic is so laser-focused on the sport’s biggest titles that he rarely competes outside of Grand Slams and ATP Masters 1000 events. In 2025, he played just four such tournaments, three 250-level events and one 500-level event, in Doha, Qatar. This year, he’s played only one tournament, the ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells, Calif., aside from the Australian Open.
Still, Djokovic is not to be taken lightly — his scant schedule allows him to show up when the spotlight is brightest. He reached the final in Melbourne this year by beating Sinner in a thrilling five-set match.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh