Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz withdrew on Tuesday from the Cincinnati Open, the last big tuneup before the U.S. Open.
A seven-time Grand Slam champion including the 2025 U.S. Open, Alcaraz has been rehabbing a right wrist injury for more than three months. He committed to compete in the Cincinnati Open, a Masters 1000 event that starts Aug. 13, and released videos in the past week that showed him taking full swings at practice.
The Spaniard suffered inflammation of a tendon in his right wrist while defeating Otto Virtanen of Finland on April 14 at the Barcelona Open. He withdrew from his next match and missed the rest of the clay and grass court seasons, including the French Open and Wimbledon.
Alcaraz, 23, previously had withdrawn from this week’s National Bank Open in Canada, which is played just prior to the Cincinnati Open. The U.S. Open begins its main draw on Aug. 30.
“We know Carlos is doing everything he can to get back to playing tournaments as soon as possible,” said Cincinnati Open tournament director Bob Moran in Tuesday’s release. “We wish him the best with his recovery and look forward to welcoming him back to Cincinnati in the future.”
Despite his inactivity, Alcaraz has risen from No. 3 to No. 2 in the world ranking due to a calendar quirk. Alcaraz defeated Italy’s Jannik Sinner in the finals at both Cincinnati and the U.S. Open in New York — the former when the current World No. 1 retired from illness while trailing 5-0 in the first set.
–Field Level Media
