Wimbledon will be without one of its biggest names this year with Carlos Alcaraz nowhere to be seen in SW19.
Alcaraz will miss the competition with a wrist injury sustained at the Barcelona Open back in April.
The injury subsequently ruled him out of the majority of the clay court season, including the French Open, and the entirety of the grass court season.
Announcing his withdrawal from Wimbledon back in May, Alcaraz said in a statement: ‘My recovery is going well and I’m feeling much better, but unfortunately I’m still not ready to compete, which is why I have to withdraw from the grass-court swing at Queen’s and Wimbledon.
‘They are two truly special tournaments for me and I will miss them a lot. We’ll keep working to come back as soon as possible!’
The 23-year-old has not had surgery on his right wrist, with the Spaniard undergoing a process of rehabilitation instead.
The injury has been confirmed as severe tenosynovitis – inflammation of the tendon sheath – with no injury to his bones.
No exact return date has been officially confirmed, although it is thought a return for the American hard court swing in August could be on the cards if everything goes according to plan.
A wrist injury to a player’s dominant hand is about the worst ailment a tennis player can suffer, given the power and explosiveness involved in almost every shot.
It remains to be seen what, if any, impact the injury will have on Alcaraz’s game in the long run, but there is currently no reason to suggest he won’t make anything other than a full recovery.
Alcaraz will have to wait before he’s given another opportunity to add to his collection of seven Grand Slam titles, which consists of the Wimbledon trophies he won in 2023 and 2024.
Jannik Sinner’s title to lose?
Alcaraz’s absence has resulted in Jannik Sinner becoming the overwhelming favourite to win Wimbledon this year.
The 24-year-old, who is the defending champion after beating Alcaraz in last year’s final, is head and shoulders above every other player on the tour – with the sole exception of his Spanish rival.
Sinner has enjoyed a sensational first half of the season, completing an historic sweep of the first five ATP Masters 1000 tournaments of the year (Indian Wells, Miami Open, Monte-Carlo Masters, Madrid Open and Italian Open).
This has seen the Italian become just the second man in history, after Novak Djokovic, to win all nine Masters 1000 titles.
However, somewhat surprisingly, Sinner is yet to add to his four Grand Slam titles this season.
Sinner was beaten in the semi-finals of the Australian Open by Djokovic, whilst in the French Open, he was unable to capitalise on Alcaraz’s absence by astonishingly throwing away a two set lead in his second round match against world No. 56 Juan Manuel Cerundolo after being hampered by stifling heat.