MADRID — Carlos Alcaraz experienced one of the happiest moments of his life this Sunday in New York. He was a direct witness to the World Cup final, carried the trophy onto the pitch at MetLife Stadium, and later celebrated in style as Spain conquered its second world title.
Alcaraz’s joy in the United States is the latest chapter in the strangest and freest summer of the Spanish tennis star’s career. And if everything goes according to plan in the coming weeks and the medical deadlines do not go out the window, Carlos Alcaraz will be celebrating in the United States again in just a few weeks. The Spaniard continues to make progress in recovering from his right wrist injury and is scheduled to make his comeback at the Cincinnati Masters 1000, right before the US Open. By then, four months will have passed. Practically 125 days of darkness since his last official point.
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In this third of a year, too much has happened since that afternoon on April 14, in the second round of Barcelona, when his right wrist said enough. The great invisible problem is that, since then, the Spaniard has not hit a ball with absolute freedom. Not even in the privacy of a practice session.
Alcaraz’s long absence—the most extensive of his career—has generated plenty of rumors. Rick Macci, former coach of five players who reached world number one (the sisters Serena and Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova, Jennifer Capriati, and Andy Roddick), claimed this week on X that Alcaraz’s wrist “is at 100%” and that the Spaniard “has played many practice matches and sets with other touring pros.” The reality, however, is still far from that scenario.
“Carlos is training, but still at a very low intensity,” sources from the seven-time Grand Slam champion’s inner circle say. No sets, no matches, nothing of the sort. The recovery is on the right track, but if Alcaraz made one thing clear from minute one, it was that he was not going to rush the timeline to try and scrape a few weeks off the calendar. He does not want to rush or compromise the rest of the season just to return a few weeks earlier.
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After the injury was confirmed, Juan Carlos Ferrero’s former pupil spent several weeks with an immobilizing splint on his right wrist. In early June, while Roland Garros was underway, the Spaniard returned to the courts, but only to do drills with his left hand. Shortly after, his coaching staff designed a rather curious sight: he was seen swinging in the air with a broken racquet, one without strings—a trick to regain the mechanics of the stroke while completely eliminating the impact of the ball on the delicate joint. That phase is now behind him.
A summer of joy
While the recovery progressed slowly, quite the opposite happened off the court. Free from the pressure of the schedule, Alcaraz enjoyed what was probably his freest period since breaking into the elite. He spent these months with a very clear mind, liberated from the urgency and suffocation of the tour—something his inner circle views as a highly positive factor for his maturity. The reflection of this oasis was his holiday sailing on a yacht in the Mediterranean, where photos of him accompanied by a mysterious woman spread like wildfire across social media.
And this Sunday he lived a day he will never forget. Just like Rafael Nadal in South Africa 2010, Alcaraz did not want to miss the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina, soaking in the thrill alongside a group of friends in the stands at MetLife.
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With his head clear, Alcaraz will return to the court this week to continue his recovery. He is already hitting the ball, but still softly and without great effort. No precaution is too small, given the track record of players like Dominic Thiem and Juan Martín del Potro with wrist injuries.
The goal he has set for himself is to gradually increase the intensity to be able to return in Cincinnati in mid-August. The last Masters 1000 before the US Open takes place from August 13 to 23. Before that is Canada, but the Spaniard will definitely miss that one. Cincinnati, for now, is the target. The tournament is even promoting itself using Alcaraz’s image. That does not mean Alcaraz will play at 100%, but his intention is to travel to Ohio and compete.
The task is no easy feat. During his time out, Alcaraz has missed two Grand Slams and two Masters 1000s, among other tournaments—to which the Canada Masters 1000 will be added—and Jannik Sinner has once again become the dominant force on the tour. Champion in Madrid, Rome, and Wimbledon, Sinner only dropped Roland Garros along the way, racking up 37 wins and just a single defeat since Indian Wells. The Italian is scary.
The countdown has already begun. After four months on the sidelines and a recovery managed to the millimeter, Cincinnati looms as the first stop of a comeback that will not only test his wrist, but also his ability to once again challenge a Sinner who has taken advantage of his absence to rule the stage.
