Nothing ruins a sports fan’s calendar quite like a star player pulling out of the biggest event of the season. Carlos Alcaraz just gave us all that exact feeling. The reigning two time French Open champion will not defend his title in Paris this year. His wrist injury has forced him to cancel his clay court plans, including the Italian Open and Roland Garros.
It is a massive blow for the tournament organisers. They spent months building the hype around his pursuit of a third straight title. Now they have to pivot to a plan B. Alcaraz says he needs to be cautious. He is only 22 years old and clearly has his eyes on the next decade, not just the next few weeks. He claims he wants to return in great shape rather than risk making the injury worse. It is the sensible thing to do, of course. That does not make it any less disappointing for those of us who were looking forward to some high level tennis drama.
The real winner in all of this, purely by default, is Jannik Sinner. The Italian currently holds the world number one spot after a brilliant start to the year. Sinner probably wanted to win the title by beating Alcaraz on the court, not because his main rival stayed home to nurse a sore wrist. He told reporters that he wants to play against the best players in the world. He also added that the best thing to do is look after the body. It is a classy response, even if a part of him must be relieved to have one fewer headache to deal with in the draw.
The French Open starts on May 24, and the tennis world will have to manage without its favourite young Spaniard. The clay courts will miss his slides and his smiles. Let us hope this break gives him enough time to get back on track for Wimbledon. If not, the rest of the tennis tour will have to find someone else to save them from a boring summer.
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Related topics: Tennis
