Roddick praises Alcaraz's return: "He is the most exciting player"
The former world number 1 acknowledged that he was wrong to think that the Spanish tennis player would not play in New York, and he expressed enthusiasm about the news.
Yesterday, Carlos Alcaraz delivered the big news of the week and the last few months by announcing that he will play in the US Open 2026, which will begin on August 29, after recovering from his right wrist injury. As expected, the tennis world has been filled with opinions about it, and one of the most notable has come from Andy Roddick, who acknowledged that he was wrong and is very excited about the announcement.
The former world No. 1 was among those who believed that Alcaraz would not play the last Grand Slam of the season after withdrawing from ATP Cincinnati 2026, as he did not see it possible for him to attend New York without any preparation tournaments. However, Carlos and his team decided to compete after feeling good in training and seeing that the Murcian was able to endure 4 hours of maximum demand, which led them to accept the challenge and attempt to defend the crown won last year.
Roddick has expressed his exuberance, acknowledging that "I am pleasantly surprised and my suspicions were wrong. I am excited. He is the most exciting player in tennis. We never know what to expect from him. For him to play, I have to think that the risk of a major injury is practically zero. It seems he is happy to accept that perhaps his legs are tired, perhaps he hasn’t played many matches. He might lose in the first or second round, but he will move on. This is fantastic, it’s a great victory for tennis. In the worst-case scenario, if Sinner and Alcaraz hadn’t been there, that would have been a nightmare," he acknowledged.
Roddick advises Alcaraz to play mixed doubles
Furthermore, the former American tennis player also joined the wave of those who think that Alcaraz should play mixed doubles at the US Open to warm up. In fact, there are many rumors that the Spanish player will team up with Serena Williams, which would be quite a sensation. Roddick believes it would be good for him to gain rhythm and confidence ahead of his debut in the tournament, where all eyes will be on him.
“I think he should play mixed doubles if he can. I don’t know what his progression is like or how they prioritize training, but there is a good chance that during the week leading up to the US Open we will see Federer, Agassi, McEnroe, probably Venus and Serena. We will see the most important figures in our sport, including Alcaraz; this would be a great triumph not only for the US Open but for fans in general," Andy concluded.
Alcaraz will be in New York from the beginning of the week, and in the coming days it will be known whether he will indeed play mixed doubles with Serena Williams, as the final draw of the tournament would start on Tuesday. If he does not play, he will have the whole week to train and regain feelings ahead of his first match after being away for 4 and a half months and missing two of the four Grand Slams of the season.
This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Roddick alaba el regreso de Alcaraz: "Es el jugador más emocionante"