When attention focused on Rafa Nadal’s presence at the Conde de Godó Trophy, the participation of the winner of the competition for the last two years, Carlos Alcaraz, seemed to be taken for granted. The Murcian tennis player, however, announced this Sunday his last-minute withdrawal from the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell after not having overcome the discomfort he suffers from in his right forearm, so he will not be able to defend his title. Alcaraz, who had entered the draw alongside Nadal – the innocent hand of the draw – was hoping to land in Barcelona this Sunday to test himself, with hope placed on Wednesday, when he would play his first round against the winner of the duel between Luca Van Assche . and Zhizhen Zhang. But the sensations in his training in Murcia before traveling have not been good.

This is the second consecutive tournament that Alcaraz has to give up at the last hour. A week ago he announced his withdrawal from the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 due to the injury to his arm, wearing a bandage on his right forearm. “I have been working in Monte Carlo, I tried to recover until the last moment from the injury to the pronator teres muscle in my right arm, but it has not been possible and I cannot play. I was looking forward to being able to do it,” the tennis player communicated on his social networks. On the horizon are the Madrid tournaments, and also Rome, although with Roland Garros as the main objective starting on May 26.

The double Godó champion defeated his friend Pablo Carreño in the 2022 final, and the Greek Stefanos Tsisipas in 2023. “The Murcian player did not have a good feeling in his right arm during training on Sunday and, despite having tried until At the last moment, he is not in the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell – 71 Conde de Godó Trophy,” the tournament organization announced in a brief statement. Alcaraz will communicate his decision on Monday, going personally to the Real Club de Tenis de Barcelona (RCTB).

Injuries have once again affected the young 20-year-old tennis player. His first blow came at the 2021 US Open —when he was just 18 years old—, where he suffered a fibrillar tear in his quadriceps and abductor discomfort. And although in 2022 – the year in which he would win his first Grand Slam – they respected him, abdominal discomfort at the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000 prevented him from competing in the Masters Cup and the Davis Cup Finals. He was also unable to make his debut at the Australian Open last year due to an injury during training, and bad fortune followed him when he also had to give up the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 and, at the end of the season, when he missed the Basel tournament. With the beginning of 2024, hopes renewed and hopes placed on the clay court tour, a sprained ankle forced him to abandon the premiere in Rio de Janeiro, before this double descent in Monte Carlo and Barcelona.

Now, the one from El Palmar will focus his efforts on reaching the Madrid Masters —from April 24 to May 5, where he also defends the crown—, and also to the Rome Masters 1000 —between May 8 and 19—. He has room, then, to acquire enough training for Roland Garros —from May 26 to June 9—, where last year he reached the semifinals. The obstacle: arriving in good physical shape, and avoiding the injuries that haunt the Murcian in a tight schedule.

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