Mats Wilander Says the ATP is Becoming Boring Due to Carlos Alcaraz’s Absence

Carlos Alcaraz will not be in the main draw of the French Open. The two-time champion will miss the tournament due to a wrist injury that he suffered at the 2026 Barcelona Open in April. Former World No.1 Mats Wilander believes that the absence of the Spaniard has made the men’s circuit boring.

With Alcaraz sidelined, Jannik Sinner has been dominating the ATP Tour. He’s yet to lose a match since February and has dropped just three sets since then. The Italian star won his sixth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 title at the Rome Masters, becoming the youngest player to complete his Career Golden Masters.

In each tournament he plays in, he’s the overwhelming favorite to win the championship. This is because the ATP has been dominated by Sinner and Alcaraz, and when Alcaraz is not there to compete, Sinner wins the title easily. The Italian star will not even have to face Alcaraz at the Roland Garros, the man who defeated him in a dramatic five-set thriller final last year.

This makes the men’s singles of the French Open more predictable and less competitive. Sinner could become the ninth man to complete the set of all four Grand Slams, should he win the Roland Garros. He will be following in the footsteps of Alcaraz, who achieved the feat at the Australian Open in January.

Late last year, Rafael Nadal warned that it would be a dangerous trend for the ATP Tour if only Sinner and Alcaraz continue to dominate the circuit. This season has proven that fans could lose interest in the sport if they can easily predict the winner of each tournament. In an interview on AS, Mats Wilander admitted that it wouldn’t be good for the sport if the trend of Sinner and Alcaraz continues in the next 10 years:

It’s dangerous if this continues for ten years, but history shows it won’t. Right now, Jannik Sinner is playing the best tennis of his life, and with Carlos Alcaraz injured, nobody can beat him; it seems impossible. But this won’t last forever. Besides, it’s great for the game because it pushes everyone’s level higher and higher.

Alcaraz’s last match on tour was at the Barcelona Open, where he defeated Otto Virtanen in straight sets in the second round before sustaining a wrist injury.

Mats Wilander doesn’t name Novak Djokovic amongst his favorites to win the French Open

With the French Open to kick off on May 24, there is already an ongoing debate about who will win the Grand Slam. In this kind of scenario, it would have been easier to pick Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner as favorites to win the championship. But with Djokovic’s physical strain this season, Sinner is the overwhelming favorite.

Djokovic’s last match was at the Italian Open, where he crashed out in the second round after losing to Dino Prizmic in straight sets. The match marked Djokovic’s return to the court after nearly two months away. During the aforementioned interview, Mats Wilander didn’t pick the Serbian legend among his favorites to win the French Open:

You have to include Sascha Zverev and Casper Ruud among the favorites. I’m one of those who thinks the German will win a Grand Slam before he retires; he plays better with age, has more weapons, takes more risks, and I don’t think he’ll lose to anyone except Sinner at the French Open. The dark horse is Arthur Fils because he has the game, the conviction, and the crowd on his side.

Djokovic last won a tour-level match at the Indian Wells Open in March. He has played in just three tournaments this season, his fewest at this point in a long while. However, he last won the French Open in 2023 and has extensive experience playing on the surface.

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