Carlos Alcaraz has confirmed he will miss both Wimbledon and the Queen’s Club Championships due to a wrist injury, dealing a significant blow to the grass court season and ending his hopes of defending the title he has held at the All England Club since 2023.
The world number two made the announcement on 20 May, saying his recovery was progressing well but that he was not yet ready to compete at the required level. “My recovery is going well and I’m feeling much better, but unfortunately I’m still not ready to play. I am obliged to withdraw from both Queen’s and Wimbledon. These are two really special tournaments for me and I’ll miss them a lot. We’ll keep working to come back as soon as possible,” the 23-year-old said.
Alcaraz sustained the injury during the first round of the Barcelona Open last month and has been unable to play competitively since. He subsequently withdrew from the Madrid Open, the Italian Open in Rome and Roland Garros, where he is the reigning two-time champion. Wimbledon will be only the third Grand Slam he has missed since making his main draw debut at the 2021 Australian Open, the other being the 2023 Australian Open when a hamstring problem forced him out.
Despite the injury-interrupted season, Alcaraz’s record of 22 wins and three defeats in 2026 tells its own story, with titles already secured at Doha and at the Australian Open in January, where he became the youngest man in history to complete the career Grand Slam.
Alcaraz’s withdrawal opens the door considerably for world number one Jannik Sinner, who has not previously won at Roland Garros but will now face a significantly weakened field in Paris and will be the overwhelming favourite at Wimbledon when it begins on 29 June.
The rivalry between the two has been one of the defining narratives of the sport in recent years, and Sinner was generous in his response to Alcaraz’s absence from the French Open, which runs from 24 May to 7 June. “It’s sad news for all of us. Me being a competitor, you want to play against the best players in the world and he is definitely the best player on this surface. Being that young, like he is and like I am, we need to look at our bodies first before worse things happen.”
Alcaraz himself has been admirably measured about the setbacks, consistently refusing to rush his return and prioritising his long-term health over short-term results. “I’d rather come back maybe a bit later, but in great shape, than come back quickly and risk making this injury worse. I have a long career ahead of me, so I’m not afraid to miss what I have to miss in order to recover as well as possible,” he said last month.
Alcaraz won his first Wimbledon title in 2023, defeating Novak Djokovic in a thrilling final, and successfully defended the following year against the same opponent. A third consecutive title at the All England Club is now beyond reach, leaving Sinner and the rest of the field to contest the 2026 edition without the man who had claimed the last two championships.
