Carlos Alcaraz has not been in action since April this year. A wrist injury sustained at the Barcelona Open has kept him on the sidelines for almost five months, forcing him to miss both the French Open and Wimbledon. And while he has been spotted training on a few occasions over the last couple of weeks, his absence from the Montreal and Cincinnati Masters has raised fresh questions over his return ahead of the US Open.
As Alcaraz continues his recovery away from the media spotlight, the Spaniard was the subject of an unsettling assessment on Monday, with an Italian tennis official questioning whether his prolonged absence has affected him beyond the physical side of his injury.
Gianni Daniele, president of the medical commission of the Italian Tennis Federation, suggested that Alcaraz could be going through a phase of “mental weakness” and even claimed that a form of depression may have developed during his lengthy recovery.
Speaking to Italian media outlet Repubblica, Daniele said the exact nature of Alcaraz’s wrist injury had not been clearly established in Spain before offering his assessment. “From Spain, it hasn’t been known with certainty what type of wrist injury Carlos had. Now a hypothesis of mental weakness is coming into play: having difficulties in regaining the intensity of his previous work, a form of depression might have developed in his mind, a vicious cycle that does not give him the confidence he once had,” he said.
Daniele’s comments suggest that, in his view, Alcaraz’s difficulties may now extend beyond his physical recovery and into his confidence and ability to return to his previous training intensity.
“Having difficulties recovering the previous work intensity, a kind of depression would have been created in his head, a vicious circle that doesn’t allow him to have the confidence he had before,” he added. “Doubts would start to take hold of his mind, and it’s a shame, because even for the number one, it means not finding a rival of such an extraordinary calibre.”
This is the second time Alcaraz has been criticised by a senior figure from the Italian Tennis Federation. In June, federation president Angelo Binaghi took a swipe at the Spaniard over his reported purchase of a yacht, contrasting him with Jannik Sinner.
“If I may make a comparison: unlike Alcaraz, Jannik would never buy a six-million-euro yacht. I’m convinced of it, and I doubt anyone can prove me wrong,” Binaghi had told Corriere della Sera.
Daniele’s latest comments, however, came while comparing the injury situations of Sinner and Alcaraz. Sinner, who has not played since successfully defending his Wimbledon title, withdrew from the Cincinnati Open after previously pulling out of the Canadian Masters.
Daniele explained that Sinner took a break after Wimbledon before resuming intense training ahead of the hard-court swing, something he said can place additional stress on joints such as the knee, hip and ankle. “These issues are exacerbated by a period of inactivity that can lead to inflammation of the tendons,” he said.
