Carlos Alcaraz to miss the 2023 Australian Open
Tennis world is in absolute shock as World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from the Australian Open 2023.
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Carlos Alcaraz (Credits: Tennis 365)
Spanish World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from the Australian Open 2023 making the whole tennis world in absolute shock. The Spanish youngster announced this sad news via his Twitter handle. He tweeted that his right leg muscle got injured during pre-season training.
The withdrawal means that the main draw of the Australian Open men’s singles will open up in many ways. One of the most important impacts will be that Novak Djokovic will be seeded 4th and will avoid a quarter-final encounter with the defending champion Rafael Nadal. Taylor Fritz will subsequently be seeded 8th and Frances Tiafoe 16th. If Greece is able to reach the finals of the United Cup and Stefanos Tsitsipas is able to beat Hubert Hurkacz or Taylor Fritz en route, the Greek will be seeded first in the Australian Open 2023.
As he tweeted, “When I was at my best in the preseason, I picked up an injury through a chance, unnatural movement in training. This time it’s the semimembranosus muscle in my right leg. I’d worked so hard to get to my best level for Australia but unfortunately, I won’t be able to play the Care A2+ Kooyong or the Australian Open. It’s tough, but I have to be optimistic, recover and look forward. See you in 2024 Australian Open.“
Carlos Alcaraz had to withdraw from the ATP finals 2022 as well due to an abdomen injury. After an incredible season winning his first major title and becoming the youngest World No.1 ever, the Spanish youngster is going through a dark phase all of a sudden.
Also Read: Carlos Alcaraz raises funds for Down Syndrome patients by donating his US Open winning shoes
The 2022 season took a U-turn for Alcaraz since the Paris Masters
Carlos Alcaraz became World No. 1 at 19 years, 4 months, and 7 days, displacing Lleyton Hewitt‘s nearly 21-year-old record of being the youngest at 20 years, 8 months, and 26 days. Apart from his maiden Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open, Alcaraz collected 4 other titles in 2022, which include 2 Masters 1000 tournaments.
The US Open run of Alcaraz made the tennis world in a vow as he had to win 3 5-setters back to back before reaching the final. The pre-quarter-final 5-setter was against Croatian Former US Open Champion Marin Cilic. Then in the quarter-finals, he had to deal with his ‘biggest rival’ as of now – Jannik Sinner. The match set the record as the second-longest match (5 hours and 15 minutes) in US Open history.
The semi-final 5-set triumph was against the French Power House Francis Tiafoe. Then in the finals, he defeated 5th seed Casper Ruud in 4 sets. Both players were battling for World Number 1 position as well in that match. Alcaraz is having a win-loss record of 57-13 this season, including 5 ATP titles.
After all these triumphs, Alcaraz’s season took a complete U-turn. The problem started when he had to withdraw against Holger Rune in the Paris Masters Quarter-finals. Alcaraz was trailing 3-6,6-6(1-3) when the abdomen injury became unbearable for the Spaniard to continue. He also had to withdraw from the ATP finals 2022. Later in December 2022, Alcaraz played but looked out of sorts in the Dubai exhibition tournament. There he lost in straight sets against Andrey Rublev and Casper Ruud.
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