Carlos Alcaraz’s bid for a third consecutive French Open title has been cut short, after the world No. 2 confirmed Friday he will miss Roland Garros next month due to a lingering wrist injury.
The 22-year-old Spaniard sustained the injury during his opening match at the Barcelona Open earlier this month and immediately withdrew. Initial optimism faded after scans revealed more significant damage than first feared, forcing him to pull out of the Madrid Open as well. On Friday, Alcaraz confirmed he will also skip the Italian Open in Rome, ruling him out of the entire clay-court swing.
“After the results of the tests carried out today, we have decided that the most prudent thing to do is to be cautious and not participate in Rome or Roland Garros as we wait to evaluate the progress so we can decide when to return to the court,” Alcaraz said in a statement.
“This is a difficult time for me, but I am sure we will come out of it stronger.”
The withdrawal ends Alcaraz’s hopes of becoming just the third man in the Open Era to win three straight Roland Garros titles, following Bjorn Borg and Rafael Nadal. He was chasing a career-defining season after capturing the Australian Open in January and looking to back up his 2024 clay campaign, where he swept Monte Carlo, Rome, and Roland Garros before finishing runner-up in Barcelona.
Friday’s announcement marks another frustrating chapter in Alcaraz’s battle with injuries, particularly during key stretches of the calendar. The Spaniard has now missed four majors in his young career. He was forced out of the 2023 Australian Open with a right leg injury sustained in training, and missed the 2022 ATP Finals and Davis Cup Finals with an abdominal tear.
Earlier in 2024, he withdrew from the Rio Open after rolling his ankle just two games into his opening match, and later pulled out of Monte Carlo with a right forearm issue before returning to win the title there anyway.
Despite those setbacks, Alcaraz has established himself as the dominant force on clay. His 2024 Roland Garros triumph over world No. 1 Jannik Sinner remains one of the tournament’s great finals — a five-hour, 29-minute marathon where Alcaraz saved three championship points to win 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2.
Alcaraz’s absence dramatically shifts the landscape in Paris. Jannik Sinner, who claimed both the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2024 plus the US Open last summer, now has a clear opportunity to complete the Career Grand Slam at just 23.
Reacting after his Madrid Open win over Benjamin Bonzi, Sinner said: “It’s sad for tennis. Me being a competitor, I always want to play against the best in the world and he definitely is the best in the world here on this surface. I wish him to recover as fast as possible.”
Alcaraz will now turn his attention to the grass season, with Wimbledon beginning June 29. The Spaniard won the title at the All England Club in 2023 and 2024, and will look to make his return there if his wrist heals in time.
The French Open main draw begins May 24 at Roland Garros.
