Tennis

‘Very disappointing as a fan’ – Fans upset as Carlos Alcaraz pulls out of Australian Open due to leg injury

Due to Alcaraz’s withdrawal, Rafael Nadal will move up to the top seed.

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Carlos Alcaraz, the US Open champion, announced on Friday that he will miss the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year, due to a right leg injury sustained during training. Due to Alcaraz’s withdrawal, Rafael Nadal, a fellow Spaniard and 22-time major winner, will move up to the top seed for the Australian Open, which begins in Melbourne on January 16.

“I picked up an injury through a chance, unnatural movement in training,” the 19-year-old Spaniard wrote on his Twitter account. “I’d worked so hard to get to my best level for Australia but unfortunately I won’t be able to play,” the world’s top-ranked player added.  “It’s tough, but I have to be optimistic, recover and look forward. We’ll see you at the Australian Open in 2024.”

The top four seeds will include 21-time Grand Slam champion and nine-time champion Novak Djokovic. That will prevent him from playing his longtime foe Nadal until at least the semifinals. After being expelled from the country last year due to his refusal to get vaccinated, Djokovic will participate in the Australian Open once more.

Alcaraz won his first Grand Slam match at the US Open in September, making him the youngest world number one since the ATP rankings were established in 1973. He then finished the year at the top of the rankings, becoming the youngest player in history to do so and the first player since Andy Roddick in 2003 who wasn’t Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, or Andy Murray to do so.

However, he was forced to retire due to an abdominal tear in the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters in November, which prevented him from competing in the Djokovic-winning ATP Finals in Turin. Alcaraz was forced to skip the Davis Cup Finals as well. Alcaraz recently acknowledged that 2023 will bring new experiences for him. He will also be absent from the Kooyong Tennis Classic in Melbourne the following week.

Here is how Twitter reacted to Carlos Alcaraz’s injury

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