A former world No. 7 has said Carlos Alcaraz has “become a mystery” as the Spaniard’s injury absence continues without a firm return date.

Alcaraz has not competed since 14 April, when he picked up a right wrist injury during his opening-round win at the Barcelona Open. The seven-time Grand Slam champion has not announced when he will be back, although Spanish outlet La Verdad reported last week that he is aiming for next month’s Cincinnati Open. Clay, however, later reported that sources close to Alcaraz said: “Carlos is training, but still at a very low intensity.”

Former ATP player Corrado Barazzutti discussed the situation in an interview with Italian website Fanpage and said he could not make sense of the timeline around the injury.

“He’s become a mystery,” said Barazzutti, who won five ATP titles and reached two Grand Slams semi-finals in a career spanning from 1971 to 1984.

He added that the sequence of events left him puzzled. “He plays in Monte Carlo and loses to [Jannik] Sinner. Then he goes to Barcelona, ​​wins the first match, and retires the next day.

“From that point on, he doesn’t play for three or four months due to a wrist problem. At least as far as I’m concerned, I’d never heard of this problem.

“Personally, I never had any inkling that he had a wrist problem or that he was in pain. That’s why I’m having a hard time understanding.

“I don’t know what the problem is exactly, but it must be something serious, given that even today there’s no concrete talk of his return. The wrist, moreover, is a very delicate part of a tennis player’s body.

“I really don’t know what to say. But, at least from what’s been made public, practically nothing is known.”

Alcaraz began the 2026 season as world No. 1 and stayed there until 13 April, when he was passed by Sinner after losing to the Italian in the Monte Carlo Masters final. He now sits third in the rankings, with Alexander Zverev moving up to second after Wimbledon. Alcaraz’s 2026 record stands at 22-3.

Carlos Alcaraz is making progress in his recovery, but reports from Spain say his work on court remains at a very low intensity.

The seven-time major winner started 2026 in exceptional form. He completed the career Grand Slam at 22 after lifting the Australian Open trophy, then added the Qatar Open title in dominant fashion. His momentum changed, though, when he failed to win any of the first three Masters events of the season, in Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo. Shortly after that, a wrist injury forced him to withdraw from the Barcelona Open in mid-April.

The setback kept the 23-year-old out of the French Open and Wimbledon, raising concerns that his season could be in danger of ending early. Those worries grew further when training footage showed him using an unstrung, broken racket while still wearing a wrist brace, prompting former British No 1 Greg Rusedski to say he was “deeply concerned”.

There has also been a different view. Serena Williams’ former coach Rick Macci said Alcaraz’s wrist is at 100%, that he has played “many matches with other pros” and that he has turned the situation into a positive.

But a report from Clay Tenis presents a far more cautious picture. In a piece titled ‘Carlos Alcaraz ‘s strangest and freest summer’, Nacho Encabo describes the contrast between injury frustration and the lift of watching Spain beat Argentina 1-0 and win the 2026 World Cup at MetLife Stadium.

According to that report, Alcaraz has played no sets, no matches, “nothing of the sort”. His recovery is said to be “on track”, but he is not expected to rush back and risk the rest of the season.

He is scheduled to return at the Cincinnati Masters, held from 13-23 August, though questions remain over whether he will actually play. Clay also reported that he has not been able to hit a ball with complete freedom, even in private practice, since the injury.

Sources close to Alcaraz allegedly say, “Carlos is training, but still at a very low intensity.”

Goran Ivanisevic has offered a striking assessment of Arthur Fils, praising the Frenchman’s level and insisting his ceiling is among the very best in the sport.

Fils brought Ivanisevic on board in February, soon after returning from a serious back injury that had ruled him out since August of the previous year. The move linked the 22-year-old with one of tennis’s most respected coaches, a man who helped Novak Djokovic collect nine Grand Slam titles between 2019 and 2024.

Ivanisevic’s own resume carries weight. The Croatian won Wimbledon in 2001, climbed to world No 2, and later guided Marin Cilic to his only major title at the 2014 US Open.

Fils has backed up the optimism with results in 2026. He owns a 23-8 record, lifted the Barcelona Open, finished runner-up in Doha, and reached the semi-finals in Miami and Madrid. His run was interrupted by a hip injury in Rome, which forced him to miss Roland Garros before he came back at Wimbledon.

The Frenchman reached a career-high ranking of 14th in February 2025 and is now 23rd. Even so, his standing in the race to Turin remains strong. Despite missing both the Australian Open and French Open in 2026, he is 10th in the Race to Turin, the season-long system that decides the eight qualifiers for the ATP Finals.

Speaking to Croatian outlet Sportske Novosti, Ivanisevic was unequivocal about Fils’ prospects and said he is “definitely a top five player.”

“I’m super happy, he’s exactly the type of player I wanted to work with,” said Ivanisevic.

“He’s young, he’s one of the biggest talents, someone whose game is enjoyable, he’s attractive, he’s powerful.

“It’s a shame that at the moment when he was in shape he had problems with injuries.

“We found the right people to solve it. He played Wimbledon, it could have been better, but it was great that he played at all.

“I think he’s capable of entering the top 10 by the end of the year, and he’s definitely a top five player. As long as he’s healthy.”