MADRID – You can never be too careful when it comes to a wrist injury, believes former ATP world No. 1 Jim Courier when analyzing Carlos Alcaraz’s turbulent present. Rushing makes no sense, adds the American, who points to the wrist problems that derailed Juan Martín del Potro’s career as a cautionary tale.
“I think that Carlos is being very wise and being cautious with the wrist. I think there are sadly some cautionary tales of players that have had their careers completely derailed by wrist injuries,” Courier stated this Tuesday in an interview with a small group of media outlets, including CLAY.
The conversation with the former American tennis player took place a couple of hours before Alcaraz announced on his social media accounts that he will also miss Wimbledon. That news, however, barely changes Courier’s argument to defend and applaud Alcaraz’s caution.
“Juan Martin Del Potro is the prime example of a player who was a champion and will always be a champion but as we look at what his career might have been, had he stayed healthy, will always wonder,” Courier noted during the chat.
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“And I don’t want to be sitting here in 20 years wondering what Carlos Alcaraz might have achieved if he had just taken a little bit more time to take care of his wrist. He’s so smart to be careful with the wrist,” added the American, who is part of Eurosport’s team of tennis experts. HBO Max and Eurosport offer Roland Garros live, in full, and exclusively in Spain.
Alcaraz himself was the first to ensure he was not going to risk anything at all. “We have a very long career ahead of us, many years, and forcing it at this Roland Garros could hurt me a lot for future tournaments. I prefer to come back a little bit later and fully recovered, rather than coming back early, rushing, and in bad shape. You have to take care of yourself, because a career can be very long,” Alcaraz, who recently turned 23, said a month ago in Madrid during the Laureus Awards gala.
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Alcaraz’s prudence caused some surprise in Spain, a country accustomed to Rafael Nadal defying the limits of his body practically every single season. Courier, however, believes Nadal would fully back Alcaraz’s decision.
“The wrist is a very delicate area on the body. And Nadal is a warrior, no question about that. I think Alcaraz is a warrior too. You can ask Rafa what he thinks about what Carlos is doing. I’m sure he would support what Carlos is doing because I think there’s just real logic to it. You take your time, you make sure that you’re ready. Take your time and make sure that you’re right when you come back,” Courier responded to a question from CLAY.
“When you come back, you have a long career. Careers last longer,” Courier added. “And I think in the last 15 to 20 years, careers have extended. And we’ve seen players oftentimes in their mid-30s playing the best tennis of their life. So with modern medicine, surgeries, players are getting back from them faster. Players understand how to take better care of their bodies. There’s a lot of things that players are doing these days that are helping them play at a high level for a longer period of time.”
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