Carlos Alcaraz Calls Out ATP for Heading in ‘Wrong Direction’ After His and Jannik Sinner’s Injury Woes

Carlos Alcaraz is in Shanghai for the penultimate Masters 1000 of the season. He will be hoping to continue his winning ways and win his fourth title of the season as he defended his crown at the Japan Open prior to flying to China.

The Japan Open was his first title since recovering from the wrist injury he picked up at the Barcelona Open. Alcaraz returned to action at the US Open, where eventual runner-up Ben Shelton ended his title defense.

The Spaniard next won the Laver Cup with Team Europe before clinching his second ATP 500 title of the season in Tokyo with a straight-set win over Jiri Lehecka. During the US Open, Alcaraz revealed plans to take longer breaks by skipping future tournaments to avoid fatigue and injury.

Alcaraz won’t get another chance to face arch-rival Jannik Sinner this season as, due to a knee injury, the Italian has been sidelined since his Wimbledon victory. He was first forced to skip the Cincinnati Masters, US Open, China Open, and now the Shanghai Masters.

The five-time Grand Slam champion, in fact, has announced that he has ended his season. Sinner has already taken home six titles, winning all in big events. He played five back-to-back Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Madrid, and Rome before he beat Alexander Zverev to defend his Wimbledon crown.

Alcaraz blamed the demanding schedule for players’ injuries and argued that the ATP forces them to compete too much and doesn’t give them enough breaks to recover, increasing their injury risk.

One of the reasons we had to see the players who are getting injured [is because] I think they are pushing us too much out of the line sometimes, to play a lot of tournaments, to play a lot of matches. I think it’s getting in the wrong direction. I just wish Jannik the best for these months, just to be in good shape for the next season. Hopefully [we will] see him soon, but I think they have to see a little bit [of] what’s going on on the Tour along with the players.

Carlos Alcaraz told TNT Sports

Alcaraz will face Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the opening round. They met in the 2021 Next Gen ATP Finals, which Alcaraz won.

John McEnroe says Carlos Alcaraz will find it hard to close the gap with the Big 3

Carlos Alcaraz is the youngest man in the Open Era to complete the Career Grand Slam. He achieved the milestone by defeating Novak Djokovic in the final of the Australian Open this year.

Alcaraz is 23, and many believe that if he stays healthy and keeps adding major titles to his trophy cabinet, he could break Djokovic’s record of 24 Grand Slam titles. But John McEnroe is of a different opinion.

One of the reasons why I think it’s going to be so difficult for Alcaraz to close the gap with Djokovic and Federer in Grand Slams is that there are bigger tennis players like Shelton, who can step up and play incredible matches and even knock the racket out of Alcaraz’s hands and frustrate him.

John McEnroe said on the Off Court with Greg podcast

In Shanghai, the World No.3 is a one-time quarterfinalist, reaching the stage on his second appearance in 2024. He skipped the tournament last year due to an injury. Valentin Vacherot is the defending champion. The 17th seed will kick off his campaign against Sebastian Baez.

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