The first Grand Slam tournament of the year has to take place without the world number one. Carlos Alcaraz has sustained a hamstring injury, and the absence of the 19-year-old tennis pro makes Rafael Nadal the top favorite. There are also question marks for the world's best women.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz will not take part in the Australian Open due to injury. The Spanish tennis shooting star announced this via Twitter. In training before the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, he suffered a muscle injury in his right rear thigh.
"When I was in top form, I injured myself with an unnatural movement," wrote the 2022 US Open winner: "I've been working very hard. It's a difficult moment, but I have to be optimistic, recover and post look ahead."
Alcaraz already missed the ATP finals in Turin and the Davis Cup with the Spanish team at the end of last year. At that time, a muscle tear in the left abdominal wall put the 19-year-old out of action, which he suffered in the quarter-finals at the Masters in Paris at the beginning of November. In the duel with the Dane Holger Rune, the Spaniard had to give up, it will be his last game so far. In September, after his final victory in New York over the Norwegian Casper Ruud, Alcaraz rose to become the youngest number one in tennis history.
The seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams has also canceled her participation. Because of an unspecified injury that she sustained this week at a tournament in Auckland, New Zealand, she cannot start at the first tennis Grand Slam tournament of the year, the organizers said. The 42-year-old was given a wildcard for the Australian Open last month to be able to compete in her 22nd major at Melbourne Park. The Australian Kim Birrell now gets her wild card place.
The five-time Wimbledon champion has struggled with injuries over the past two years and was only able to play four tournaments in the United States last August. At these tournaments, she did not progress past the first round and ended her season by losing to Alison van Uytvanck at the US Open.
The start of Iga Swiatek is also uncertain. The world number one for women could also be missing. The 21-year-old Pole canceled her participation in the upcoming WTA event in Adelaide because of problems with her right shoulder, it is the dress rehearsal for the Australian Open. On Friday Swiatek, reigning winner of the French Open and the US Open, conceded a 2: 6, 2: 6 against the American Jessica Pegula at the United Cup for Poland and shed bitter tears at the end.
The Australian Open will be held in Melbourne from January 16th to 29th, Grand Slam record winner Rafael Nadal has risen to number one on the men's seeding list after Alcaraz' failure. In addition to the Spaniard, Serbian superstar Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev from Russia should have the best chance of winning the title. The German Olympic champion Alexander Zverev celebrates his Grand Slam comeback after an injury break of almost seven months.
