Two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz will miss this year’s Wimbledon because of a wrist injury.
The world number two withdrew from last month’s Barcelona Open after sustaining the injury to his right wrist in the first round.
The Spaniard subsequently pulled out of the French Open, where he is the two-time defending champion, to recover.
“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,” Alcaraz, 23, wrote on Instagram on Tuesday.
“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.”
Alcaraz was the two-time defending champion at last year’s Wimbledon but lost in the final to rival Jannik Sinner.
Alcaraz began the year by winning his first Australian Open title and becoming the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam.
He would have been looking to kick on further in 2026, but will now miss the entire grass court season along with the majority of the clay court swing.
Alcaraz had been set to play at Queen’s, where he is a two-time winner, before Wimbledon begins on 29 June.
He is now set to lose even more ground in the rankings to Italy’s Sinner, who replaced him as world number one last month and has won the past six Masters 1,000 tournaments, including three in the past five weeks.
The past nine men’s major singles titles have been split between Alcaraz and Sinner, with the Spaniard winning five of them.
Alcaraz’s withdrawal from Wimbledon simultaneously opens up the draw and boosts Sinner’s title hopes, given his recent dominance on the ATP Tour.
However, the 24-year-old Italian has said he will not play any grass court events in the build up to Wimbledon after a draining few months.
Wrist injuries are notoriously problematic for tennis players, especially if not managed correctly, and Alcaraz previously said he did not want to do further harm for “future tournaments”.
Speaking at the Laureus Awards in April before announcing his decision to withdraw from the French Open, he said: “I have a very long career ahead of me, with many years still to come.
“Forcing things at this Roland Garros could really harm me for future tournaments.”
Former US Open champion Dominic Thiem retired at the end of 2024 after his career was derailed by a wrist injury, while Juan Martin del Potro was also plagued by a wrist problem after winning his sole major at the 2009 US Open.
Source (BBC Sport)
