Carlos Alcaraz Opens Up About the State of His Ankle After Winning His Second-Round Tie in Tokyo

Carlos Alcaraz will face American star Brandon Nakashima in the quarter-finals of the Tokyo Open.

Carlos Alcaraz Opens Up About the State of His Ankle After Winning His Second-Round Tie in Tokyo

Carlos Alcaraz (via the US Open)

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Carlos Alcaraz reflects on his injury concerns after overcoming Belgian star Zizou Bergs in straight sets to reach his first Tokyo Open quarter-finals. The Spaniard played without much struggle in his ankle, putting to bed any injury scare. He’s now on course to win his eighth title of the season.

Alcaraz had tweaked his left ankle during his opening match against Sebastian Baez at the Tokyo Open. He jarred it early in the match and was in pain before the medics strapped his leg. He returned to the court and continued his impressive display, beating the Argentine star in straight sets.

On Friday (September 26), it was reported that the World No.1 didn’t train as his physiotherapist, Juanjo Moreno, advised him to take a break from the court after he complained that he was still feeling some pains 24 hours after the match. He trained on Saturday morning before taking to the court to face Bergs.

Alcaraz had a tough first set as he was broken early by the Belgian star. But he did well to react, breaking back immediately and then winning the set. In the second set, he led 3-0 before Bergs won his first point. He then went on to win the match 6-4, 6-3 after an hour and nineteen minutes on the court.

During Alcaraz’s on-court interview, he was asked about the state of his ankle after the injury scare. The World No.1 praised his physiotherapist for his job well done in getting him to full fitness before the second round clash.

It was tough and it was a really important day and a half I had to recover as good as I could. I have said it before and I will say it again, I have the best physio in the world, who I trust 100 per cent. The work he has done for the ankle has been great. I could play normally, which is great. Sometimes I was worried about some movements, when I could feel the ankle, but in general I played some great tennis, a great match.

Alcaraz has now won 64 matches this season, one less than his career-best 65 tour-level wins in 2023. He’s expected to reach at least 50 wins on tour this year and has already qualified for the ATP Finals in Turin. Meanwhile, the Spaniard is seeking to claim his eighth title of the season.

Carlos Alcaraz says he was worried about his movement on the court after injury concerns

Carlos Alcaraz has dominated the men’s circuit this season, winning seven titles, including two Grand Slams. The World No.1 has won three ATP Masters 1000 titles and two ATP 500 crowns. The 22-year-old won his last title at the US Open after beating Jannik Sinner in the final of the US Open in New York.

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (Image via X/Carlos Alcaraz 4K)

However, Alcaraz will have to maintain his excellent performance in matches to cement his place at the top of the ATP rankings. He revealed during the aforementioned on-court interview that he was worried with his movement of the court:

In the match, I felt a certain normality when competing, although I recognize that there were several moments where I was a little worried, in some movements on the court, I felt some distress about how the ankle would respond to the demands of a match like this. Overall, looking at everything in perspective, I can say it’s been a great match on my part, a performance.

Alcaraz will face Brandon Nakashima in the quarter-finals of the Tokyo Open. Nakashima defeated Marton Fucsovics 7-5, 6-3 to clinch his 30th win of the season and eighth quarter-final of 2025.

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