Juan Martin del Potro understands better than most how damaging wrist problems can be for a tennis career.

The Argentine won the US Open in 2009 and established himself as one of the leading players of his era, but injuries repeatedly interrupted his progress. After his Flushing Meadows triumph, he battled severe tendonitis and pain in his right wrist, which forced him out of much of the 2010 ATP Tour season. Four years of trouble with that wrist were followed by two major surgeries on his left wrist between 2014 and 2015.

That background has made del Potro one of the sport’s biggest what-ifs, and it is why he has been closely following Carlos Alcaraz’s latest setback. The Spaniard picked up a wrist injury at the Barcelona Open in April and was then ruled out of Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the two Masters events leading into the US Open.

Alcaraz has now returned to competition in New York, opening his campaign with a first-round win over Roman Safiullin to arrange a second-round meeting with Jaime Faria. While preparing for his comeback at Flushing Meadows, he also received direct advice from del Potro.

Speaking to La Nacion, the Argentine said: “We crossed paths in the United States, he was still wearing the splint, and my advice was: ‘Patience with the wrist and don’t touch it.’

“I suffered through it myself, and at that time, not wanting to stop or not wanting to lose that four or five spot in the ranking, I did things that Carlitos doesn’t have to do today.”

Del Potro’s own Grand Slam run after his 2009 title included a quarter-final appearance at the Australian Open and a semi-final at Wimbledon, and those were the deepest major runs of his career.

Alcaraz, the second seed behind Alexander Zverev, is still aiming to defend his title at the US Open. He has also benefited from several seeded exits in the opening round, including Novak Djokovic, Arthur Fils, Matteo Arnaldi, and Cameron Norrie. If he beats Faria, he will face either James Duckworth or Wu Yibing next.

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have defined the ATP Tour over the past three seasons, establishing themselves as the two leading figures in men’s tennis. Their dominance was underscored before Alexander Zverev’s Roland Garros win earlier this year, when the pair had collected the previous nine Grand Slam titles between them.

Sinner’s Wimbledon title in July marked his fifth major during that span, while Alcaraz also owns five since winning Roland Garros in 2024. Both players have still managed to separate themselves from the rest of the field, even though injuries have interrupted their rivalry in 2026.

Alcaraz was sidelined by a wrist injury that kept him out of Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Sinner has been dealing with a knee injury, which has prevented him from appearing at the US Open.

Even with those absences, the Italian and the Spaniard remain the most decorated active players in men’s tennis aside from Novak Djokovic’s remarkable Grand Slam record. Many observers find it difficult to choose between them, but Juan Martin del Potro has made his preference clear.

Speaking to ESPN Spain, the 2009 US Open champion said: “For me, Alcaraz, he’s the most complete player. He has a freshness in his game that maybe lets him do things Sinner doesn’t. He’s very talented, can vary the pace in every way, and has every shot. I’m a big fan of him.”

Alcaraz has had a chance to make the most of Sinner’s absence in New York, although fitness concerns have also affected his own campaign. He returned to action in the first round of the US Open after four and a half months away, beating Roman Safiullin 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. That result sent him into a second-round meeting with Jaime Faria and gave him a 25th US Open win.

The world No 3 has also benefited from several early exits in his section of the draw, with Novak Djokovic, Arthur Fils, and Cameron Norrie all losing in the first round.

If Alcaraz wins the US Open, it would be his eighth Grand Slam title and leave him three ahead of Sinner. Their next meeting will have to wait, as both have chosen different tournaments after the US Open. Sinner is set to defend his title at the China Open in Beijing, while Alcaraz will defend his own at the Japan Open in Tokyo.

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have defined men’s tennis across 2024 and 2025, yet the 2026 season has not given them enough chances to extend that rivalry on court.

The two leading players in the game have met only once this year, in the Monte Carlo Masters final. The Australian Open was the only Grand Slam both entered in 2026.

Alcaraz was sidelined from Roland Garros and Wimbledon because of a wrist injury. When he returned at the US Open, Sinner withdrew with a knee injury.

That pattern has prompted close attention to the ATP Tour, and Marion Bartoli has offered her view on why injuries have become such a concern this season.

Speaking on Sky Sports Tennis, the former Wimbledon champion said: “The problem is the surfaces are getting slower and slower, but the balls are extremely heavy.

“I understand that point of view, of course, but you have to take into consideration the health of the players, because without players, you have no tour.

“Whether they make the surface faster or they make the ball lighter, but one has to come back to what it was before, because at some point, if we keep losing Sinner, Alcaraz, and the rest of the field, I mean, we don’t have much to talk about.”

Before 2026, both players were rarely absent and they shared the last eight Grand Slams evenly across the 2024 and 2025 seasons.

In 2025, they met six times. Their clashes included finals at Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open, along with meetings in the title matches at the Italian Open, the Cincinnati Open, and the ATP Finals.

Alcaraz ended that season with four wins, while Sinner had two. Their battles were a central force in the men’s game.

Sinner is now expected back at the China Open at the end of September, while Alcaraz has again chosen the Japan Open at the same time. The next realistic chance for the pair to meet on the ATP Tour is the Shanghai Masters, scheduled from October 5th to October 18th.