Carlos Alcaraz has still not confirmed whether he will play the US Open after withdrawing from the Cincinnati Masters 1000. The New York tournament begins on Sunday, August 23, and the Spaniard is still recovering from a right wrist injury.
Alcaraz has been absent from competition since mid April, and his withdrawal has drawn reaction from Italy. Gianni Daniele, the medical services chief of the Italian Tennis Federation, gave starkly different assessments of the situations facing Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Daniele said Sinner's absence from Cincinnati stemmed from a two week break he took after winning Wimbledon, followed by a return to training that was too intense, which caused stress on several joints. Daniele said these were problems made worse by a period of inactivity that can cause inflammation in the tendons.
A different diagnosis for Alcaraz
Daniele's assessment changes when he turns to Alcaraz. He noted that people around the player have never confirmed the exact nature of the wrist injury Alcaraz suffered in Barcelona in the spring. Daniele said Alcaraz's situation goes beyond a simple physical problem.
He said a hypothesis of mental weakness is now coming into play, and that Alcaraz's difficulty in recovering his previous training intensity may have created a form of depression in his mind, a vicious circle that has robbed him of his former confidence.
Daniele said what is failing the Spaniard is his confidence after this long period out of competition, and that doubts would be starting to take control of his head. He pointed to a supposed psychological problem for Alcaraz, in contrast to how he views Sinner, saying the world number one will be in perfect shape to chase the title at the US Open.
Not the first Italian criticism
This is not the first time the Italian Tennis Federation has criticized Alcaraz. Federation president Angelo Binaghi previously criticized Alcaraz openly for buying a yacht.
