Jannik Sinner has described Carlos Alcaraz's withdrawal from the French Open as “painful and very sad” for tennis. The world No 1 learned of his rival's absence due to a wrist injury after battling to a three-set victory over Benjamin Bonzi in the second round of the Madrid Open.
“Tennis needs Carlos,” said Sinner. “Tennis is a much better sport when he’s around. But being young, going through difficult moments, it can happen. I do believe he’s going to come back stronger than before. But injuries are always tough, especially a wrist.”
The Italian, who lost to Alcaraz in a memorable five-set French Open final last year, believes the Spaniard has made the right decision not to rush his recovery. “If you come back too early then maybe you have a bigger problem afterwards,” he added. “We all want that he’s competitive for when he’s going to come back. In this case, now the next goal I guess for him, and I hope so, it’s Wimbledon.”
Sinner, who won his first Masters title on clay in Monte Carlo two weeks ago, is now the hot favourite to complete his career grand slam in Paris. However, he batted away questions about whether Alcaraz's absence would diminish any potential achievement, saying: “I think it’s not the case to talk about this now. We are in Madrid now and I’ll try to go as far as I can here and then we talk about this in Paris.”
The 24-year-old extended his winning streak to 18 matches in Madrid, despite losing the first set to Bonzi. He described the conditions in the Spanish capital as “unique”, noting the slippery court and fast ball speed. “This performance was good when it counted, not perfect, but you cannot be perfect always,” he said.
