Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Madrid Open but expects to be fit for French Open
Home-crowd favorite Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from the Madrid Open on Thursday because of muscle injuries, saying he didn't want to risk making things worse ahead of the French Open.
Article content
Article content
The third-ranked Spaniard said he has not fully recovered from the upper leg ailment that bothered him during the Barcelona Open final last Sunday. He also said he has a left leg injury. His first appearance at the Caja Magica in Madrid was scheduled for Saturday.
Article content
Alcaraz is a two-time champion in Madrid, having won in 2022 and 2023. He was the second seed this week and in the same half of the draw as Novak Djokovic.
Article content
Alcaraz said he did 'everything possible to play' but had to make the 'tough decision' to withdraw after listening to his body and talking to doctors.
Article content
'Madrid is one of the special tournaments for me, it's a tournament that I enjoy, I get to play in front of my fans, it's one of the first tournaments I attended when I was a kid,' Alcaraz said. 'These types of decisions are not easy to make but sometimes you have to think about your health and about what is important. A Grand Slam is a Grand Slam. If I play here, I could make the injuries worse and stop for several months and that's not worth it.'
Article content
He said he felt 'secure' about recovering in time to play next month at Roland Garros, where he is the defending champion. He won the Roland Garros final last year against Alexander Zverev, who has just leapfrogged the Spaniard to No. 2 in the world after winning in Munich last week.
Article content
Alcaraz said he will also try to play in Rome ahead of the French Open, but wasn't 100% sure if he would be able to make it.
Article content
Alcaraz needed treatment on his leg during his straight-set loss to Holger Rune in the Barcelona final. He had not practiced in Madrid yet, and said this week that he felt 'fine' but was waiting on medical test results to determine whether he would play.
Article content
Alcaraz, who will turn 22 on May 5, won in Monte Carlo to start his clay-court campaign and on a nine-match winning run until the Barcelona final. He said he later also felt pain in a muscle in his left leg.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Raducanu to miss Berlin Open because of back issue ahead of Wimbledon
LONDON (AP) — Emma Raducanu will miss next week's Berlin Open because of a back problem, as she tries to get ready for Wimbledon. The 37th-ranked Raducanu has been dealing with the back issue since before the French Open last month. She took an off-court medical timeout during her quarterfinal loss at Queen's Club to Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen on Friday. Afterward, the 22-year-old Raducanu said she needs rest. 'I'm not overly concerned that it's something serious,' the 2021 U.S. Open champion said, 'but I know it's something that's very annoying and needs proper and careful management.' Nine of the top 10 women's players are set to compete in Berlin, a grass-court event players use to prepare for Wimbledon, which starts on June 30. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. ___ AP tennis:
Winnipeg Free Press
19 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
A frustrated McIlroy smashes a US Open tee marker but makes it to the weekend anyway
OAKMONT, Pa. (AP) — First Rory McIlroy flung an iron down the 12th fairway. Then he used driver to demolish a tee marker on 17. He might not win the sportsmanship award at the U.S. Open, but he will get to play on the weekend. McIlroy overcame two rounds of disappointment by draining a 5-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole Friday to finish at 6-over par and guarantee himself a tee time at Oakmont this weekend. Other than the approach shot he hit on 18 to save the week, or the 20-foot birdie he made on 15 after teeing off into the first cut, very little of his first 36 holes was pretty. McIlroy's weekend was still in limbo when he walked to the tee on the drivable par-4 17th hole, then blocked the shot into a greenside bunker. He used his left arm to smash the club down and shatter the nearby tee marker. He made par there. A few hours earlier on the par-5 12th — another decent birdie chance — McIlroy catapulted his iron down the fairway after pulling his second shot into the left rough. He made par there, too. The birdie at the end capped a round of 2-over 72. It did not mask the issues McIlroy has been facing since his driver was deemed non-conforming before the PGA Championship, sending him on a mad search for a reliable replacement. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. In two rounds this week, McIlroy has hit 15 of 28 fairways, a stat that doesn't include all drivers but is indicative of where his tee game has gone since he won the Masters two months ago to complete the career Grand Slam. At Oakmont, with its ankle-high rough, two missed fairways over McIlroy's first three holes led to a pair of double-bogeys and forced him to play catch-up for the rest of the round — not to climb into contention, but simply to make the weekend. Next comes the search for motivation — something McIlroy conceded has been hard to find since his landmark victory at Augusta National. On the line this week is his string of six straight top-10 finishes at the U.S. Open, including a pair of runner-ups the last two years. He will start the third round nine shots off the lead. ___ AP golf:
Toronto Sun
a day ago
- Toronto Sun
Oakmont breaking golfer's souls: 'I'm too annoyed and too mad right now to think'
'Honestly, I'm too annoyed and too mad right now to think about any perspective.' Get the latest from Jon McCarthy straight to your inbox Jon Rahm of Spain plays a shot from the seventh tee during the second round of the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 13, 2025 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Photo by Andrew Redington / Getty Images OAKMONT, Pa. — Oakmont is up to it's old trick of breaking golfer's minds, and a few of the world's best seem ready to snap at this incredibly difficult U.S. Open course. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account 'Honestly, I'm too annoyed and too mad right now to think about any perspective. Very frustrated. Very few rounds of golf I played in my life where I think I hit good putts and they didn't sniff the hole, so it's frustrating,' said Jon Rahm after following Thursday's 69 with a 75 on Friday. 'I didn't see anything go in beside a 7-footer on seven,' the Spaniard said of his bad day on the greens. 'That's it. That's a very hard thing to deal with to try to shoot a score out here.' Jason Day took matters into his own hands — actually into his foot — after a poor putting day on Thursday. The Aussie bounced back from an opening round 76 with a second round 67 and will play the weekend. 'I bent my putter. Yeah, I just manually bent it myself. Stood on it,' he said when asked what changes he made after Round 1. 'That's kind of how I used to do it back in the day. It just hadn't been looking very good to me personally, kind of looks a little bit hooded, the grip's on a little bit closed too, so that's not a positive for me. But I bent it enough to make it look more open, which is good.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The result? 'Putted a lot better today.' Denny McCarthy is one of the very best putters on the PGA Tour, but despite putting very well on Friday he still walked off with a 74. He said most players aren't complaining, they are simply resigned to their fate. 'They're really slopey undulated greens, but there hasn't been a ton of talk. It's just kind of the common theme; everyone seems like they're exhausted when they come in off the course just because it's a punch in the face,' McCarthy said. 'Even if you've played okay and grind it out and shoot a couple under to a couple over, it's still just a grind. It just takes a lot out of you.' Sam Burns shot an almost unbelievable 65 on Friday and said sometimes trying to be perfect can be the enemy of golfers, especially on Oakmont's notorious greens. 'I try to keep it very simple. I think if you look at putting, the ball is rolling on the ground. There's a lot of imperfections on grass,' he said. 'There's a lot of different lines the ball can go in, depending on the speed, so if you try to be too perfect with putting it can drive you crazy, so I just try to really read it, put a good roll on it, focus on the speed and hope for the best.' But we all know what Red told Andy in Shawshank Redemption : 'Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive a man insane.' World Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto & GTA Canada Celebrity
