Alcaraz and an important confession about his injury: "I didn't get hurt because I had played too much"

Carlos Navarro - 5 Sep 2026 | 01:12
Carlos Alcaraz ATP US Open 2026 Rueda de prensa

The player from Murcia attributed his latest wrist injury to "bad luck" and spoke about his advancement to the second week of the US Open, where he is already expecting Tommy Paul.

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Alcaraz reflects on his injury in the press.

Carlos Alcaraz continues to be the undisputed protagonist of a US Open where he shows his candidacy for the title with every match he wins. Even today, where he was more effective than brilliant, he conserved his physical energy wonderfully and took a big step forward, eliminating Wu and giving himself the perfect amount of time to rest before moving on to conquer the second week.

The aftermath of the injury seems to be a thing of the past: the body respects Carlos, his forehand is running wild, and his explosiveness has not suffered. That said, today wasn't a good day for his forehand, which is an area to improve for upcoming matches: there is no doubt that even Alcaraz is amazed at times with his form and his quick adaptation to the rhythm of competition, something he admitted with some surprise in the press conference after the match, where he also mentioned "bad luck" as the main factor behind his injury and analyzed his round of 16 match against Tommy Paul.

Alcaraz confesses about his past injury and analyzes his form at this US Open

On what has surprised him the most about his condition and level at this stage of the tournament

"After four months without competing, without any matches, when you go out there and play an official match, with the nerves and everything else, after the match, whether it's hours later or the next day, you feel very tense. Your body can feel very tight. That hasn’t happened to me. I feel better and better after every match, as if I've been competing all along. I surprised myself seeing how I feel and how I'm recovering after each match. I'm very happy about that, being able to deliver my best performances match after match, no matter if I’m playing four or three sets. Very happy about that. My expectations here were: 'Okay, let's see how it goes.' I wasn't sure at all."

On whether he prefers quick matches in three sets or if he would like to face more challenging duels

"Quick matches, right? I like not spending too much time on the court (smiles). I think everyone wants that; everyone wants to play at their best level. The less time you spend on the court, the better for the next round."

On the arrow celebration dedicated to his siblings: is there any hidden meaning? Did they choose it for a reason?

"No, honestly, there isn’t. There’s no story behind the celebration. I was forced to choose between the arrow and dancing, so I had no doubt in choosing the arrow. I'll ask them what it’s about if I move on to the next round, but right now, it’s just this."

On what it means for Alcaraz to be "in a state of flow," how he defines that feeling when everything goes exactly as he wants

"Honestly, I’m not feeling that way. For example, today the score might say the match was very easy, but the way I felt on the court, I feel it was very tough and a match that demanded a lot from me physically and tennis-wise. It was very complicated. I don't think that everything is going easy for me, or that’s happening right now. I’ve earned every point and every game. It’s also a way to keep my feet on the ground, thinking point by point and giving my best in every situation during the match. That’s what I think about, not when things come easy to me."

After analyzing his injury and talking about if he would like to take breaks in his schedule, what has he learned from it? Was it due to playing too much?

"No, this injury didn’t come because I played too much. It is what it is: there are injuries that are just bad luck. I’m someone who doesn’t need to play many tournaments. I prefer to be mentally and physically healthy to face tournaments and it’s there that I regain the feeling of competition. I feel that there need to be moments, a certain time, to pause, prepare well for the tournaments, and face them well mentally. 

You don’t have that time and those breaks during tournaments. You live tournament after tournament, and sometimes you feel like you’re not truly prepared for some of them. That’s why I decided that probably in the future I will take breaks, because I want to feel well prepared before a Grand Slam, a Masters 1000... I want to go out on the court and have fun, feel joy, because after long seasons or when you accumulate tournaments week after week, I feel like I’m not playing joyfully, that I don't enjoy on the court. Sometimes I want to miss tennis, miss the tour, even miss you. That’s why I want to take longer breaks, because it’s impossible to last the whole season playing every tournament."

Next station, Tommy Paul

"He’s a really talented guy, someone very difficult to face. He’s very dangerous for everyone. The way he plays, how he hits the ball, it’s very hard to dominate points against him, it’s tough to face him. I’m really looking forward to seeing him again. We’ve had great battles. He’s a very nice guy; I feel we have fun, that we hit great shots and make great points. It will be fun to watch, that’s for sure. I have to be at my 100%, I must be if I want to advance."

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Alcaraz y una importante confesión sobre su lesión: "No llegó porque hubiese jugado demasiado"