According to a report by La Verdad on Tuesday, Carlos Alcaraz’s right wrist is “completely healed” and he will begin to ramp up training in an effort to make his returning during the U.S. hard-court summer.
Alcaraz recently withdrew from the first of two Masters 1000 events in Montreal, but Cincinnati (August 13-23) remains a target. Participation in Cincinnati would obviously set the Spaniard up to play in the U.S. Open (August 30-September 13). Those plans, of course, depend on how training goes in the next few weeks.
Alcaraz has not played since the Barcelona Open in April, when he took a medical timeout during a first-round win over Otto Virtanen and then withdrew prior to his next match. The 23-year-old had previously finished runner-up to Jannik Sinner at the Monte-Carlo Masters.
Whenever Alcaraz returns, he will be the No. 3 player in the world and the No. 3 seed at any Masters 1000 tournament or Grand Slam — resulting in a possible semifinal matchup with Sinner depending on how the draw shakes out. Alexander Zverev passed Alcaraz for the No. 2 spot thanks to the German’s title at Roland Garros and runner-up performance at Wimbledon.
Although the latest news involving Alcaraz is certainly positive, it is still a race — perhaps an uphill one — against time. He has barely hit any tennis balls (and none close to full power), and Cincinnati begins in less then a month with the U.S. Open not long after that.
still seems like a longshot
Watching a video of his early training/practice it was obvious that he was playing within himself very gently only carresing the ball not hitting with any real force. I don’t think he will be a serious contender at the US Open even if he is back. More like a Rafa 2009 US open.
doubt he even plays