Carlos Alcaraz, a seven-time Grand Slam champion and two-time Wimbledon winner, has withdrawn from Wimbledon due to a lingering wrist injury first felt during the Barcelona Open. Despite improving, he says he is still unfit for competition and will skip both Queen’s and Wimbledon. His withdrawal opens the door for Jannik Sinner and other contenders to capitalise on a less crowded field.
The two-time Wimbledon Champion Carlos Alcaraz is set to miss this year's Wimbledon due to a wrist injury.
The Spanish tennis player picked up the injury during a tournament in Barcelona that has led him to take a step back from the grass for a while now.
The issue began when Alcaraz reported discomfort during his match against opponent Alejandro Virtanen. Within 24 hours post that match, the tennis champion withdrew from the remainder of Barcelona Open and hasn't since played.
"My recovery is going well and I'm feeling much better, but fortunately I'm still not ready to compete, which is why I have to withdraw from the grass-court swing at Queen's and Wimbledon," Alcaraz, 23, shared on Instagram on Tuesday. Wrist injures are some of the common injuries experienced by tennis players and if not managed efficiently can lead to further damage.
In 2025, the two-time Wimbledon Champion lost his defending title to World No. 1 Jannik Sinner who has since replaced the Spaniard by winning past the six Masters 1,000 tournaments, including three in the past five weeks.
The withdrawal of Alcaraz from Wimbledon also now opens up the draw and is said to boost Sinner's title hopes, given his ruthless dominance at ATP tour has had everyone in awe. Alcaraz's extended absence is only fuelling Sinner's chance to build up a cavernous lead at the top of the tennis world championships.
However, given the mental fatigue and physically exhaustive nature of the sport and its tournament calendar throughout the year, Sinner's energies need to remain constant throughout for him to dominate it all formats including the upcoming Roland Garros before everyone moves on to the grass courts.
If the Italian world no. 1 falters, it leaves window for other players including Daniel Medvedev, Jan Choinski amongst others who can benefit from withdrawal, with the removal of a top seed opening up additional space in his section of the tournament.
As Carlos Alcaraz recovers from his wrist injury, it also signals that a return later in the summer is still very much on the table, provided recovery stays on track.