Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Cincinnati Masters as US Open return remains in doubt

Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Masters, extending his absence from competitive tennis and casting fresh doubt over his participation at the US Open later this month.

The 23-year-old has not played since suffering a wrist injury during his victory over Otto Virtanen in Barcelona on 14 April. Although he has recently resumed outdoor training sessions in front of spectators after weeks of practising indoors, he has concluded that he is not yet ready to return to competition.

The decision means Alcaraz will also miss the final ATP Masters 1000 tournament before the US Open, which begins in New York on 30 August. With Cincinnati scheduled to start on 13 August, concerns have grown over whether his first match after almost five months out would be at a Grand Slam, where men compete over the best of five sets.

Alcaraz has consistently prioritised a full recovery over an early comeback since the injury occurred. He has already missed Roland Garros, Wimbledon and both North American Masters 1000 events, while his US Open title defence is now far from certain.

His withdrawal is also expected to have significant ranking consequences. By failing to defend the 1,000 points earned from last year's Cincinnati title, Alcaraz is set to drop behind Alexander Zverev in the world rankings and lose further ground on world number one Jannik Sinner. Should he also miss the US Open, where he is defending champion, he would forfeit a further 2,000 ranking points.

If Alcaraz is unable to return in New York, his next scheduled appearance would be the Laver Cup in London in late September, followed by the ATP 500 tournament in Tokyo.