Carlos Alcaraz will miss the Mutua Madrid Open for the second consecutive year after announcing on Friday that a right wrist injury sustained in Barcelona will keep him out of the tournament beginning next week.
Alcaraz, the world No. 2, made the announcement on social media, writing that Madrid is “home, one of the most special places on my calendar,” and that it hurt deeply not to be able to compete there for a second year running.
The injury dates to Tuesday’s first-round match at the Barcelona Open, where Alcaraz defeated Otto Virtanen 6-4, 6-2 but required medical attention on his right wrist and forearm during the match, telling the physio he had felt a “sharp” pain and was experiencing discomfort on his forehand. He withdrew before his second-round meeting with Tomas Machac after undergoing tests on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters in Barcelona, Alcaraz said: “It’s a more serious injury than we imagined. I have to listen to my body so as not to suffer the consequences in the future. It is with great sadness that I have to return home and recover as quickly as possible.”
The Spaniard had arrived in Barcelona directly off the back of a runner-up finish at the Monte Carlo Masters, where he lost Sunday’s final to world No. 1 Jannik Sinner. It was the latest chapter in a troubling pattern — Alcaraz has now dealt with a physical issue during the clay swing in each of the past five seasons. Last year it was an adductor problem sustained in the Barcelona final against Holger Rune that ruled him out of Madrid.
Alcaraz owns a 15-2 record at the Caja Mágica, where he claimed back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023. His absence leaves him with no points to defend in Madrid, and attention now turns to whether he will be fit for the Italian Open in Rome and, above all, Roland Garros, where he arrives as defending champion.
